Diary
by Merciless Ruby
Summary: Written Pain: that’s what it is. With a dead mother, unknown father, and no family whatsoever, she’s sent to foster care. Thinking that everything will be better was her first mistake, and falling in love with him was her second. HitsuHina
1. Chapter 1

**Hi! Well, I'm glad to be back you guys, my awesome HitsuHina fans! Anyway, some of you remember that this was an old fic. and it was deleted by the hackers. But now, it's back and it's better than the first version and it's very angsty/hurt/comfort....but don't worry it was its romantic HitsuHina scenes... Oh yeah..... xP... Anyway, I still haven't finished my Naruto fic but I will soon cuz I just need like... 3 more chapters? I wanted to upload this fic. sooner cuz I felt like it... hehehehe. Anyway, enjoy!!! If there's ANY grammar mistake, tell me. Flamers and Critics are welcome! And, review!**

**I do not own Bleach.**

**Note: I'm still having trouble with the summary... but so far, this is what I have for the summary.**

**Summary: **Written Pain: that's what it is. With a dead mother, unknown father, and no family whatsoever, she's sent to foster care. Thinking that everything will be better was her first mistake, and falling in love with him was her second.

* * *

_Clothes scattered on the floor, moans filled the hot room as the two made their way on the bed. The prostitute underneath him smirked in ecstasy, completely forgetting about her sixteen year old daughter sleeping next door._

_Oh yes, sex was great for her. And what was even better? The myriad amount of money she received almost every single day._

_At day, she was a mother. At night, she was a prostitute._

_With the large amount of money she received from wealthy, rich (and sometimes) married men, she supported herself and her daughter. She knew that her daughter did not like the idea of her using her body in such a way, and surprisingly enough, Asia did not want her daughter making the same mistakes that she had committed when she was just twelve years-old._

_Asia wanted her daughter to become an astronaut, a teacher, a doctor, a scientist, a senator…anything but a prostitute, a whore, a slut._

_More than half of the students at her daughter's school know her reputation, though Asia did not care what anybody else thought of her. However, she did care about how others treated her only child._

_It wasn't her daughter's fault; nonetheless, everyone else blamed Momo Hinamori for everything._

_Asia's daughter only had one friend, but when the friend's parents had found out about Asia's reputation, they had demanded their little girl to end her friendship with Momo. Ever since that time, nine years ago, Momo has not had a friend._

_Asia knew that her daughter's isolation in school was because of her, and to make her daughter feel better about life, Asia acted like a teenager herself and became that friend that her daughter needed._

_On some Saturday or Sunday nights, they would go to the movie theaters and watch movie of romance and crime category. Or, they would go to musicals such as Phantom of the Opera. Ice skating and teen clubs were also a few things the two done or gone to as well._

_The prostitute smiled as the man above her touched her the right way._

_Yes, sex was great._

_As things soon got steamier, she had not realized her client grab a pillow from her bed and suddenly place it over her face._

_Realization hitting her, and hard, her eyes opened though she quickly closed them as the soft fabric of the pillow uncomfortably touched them. Naked with her heart pounding against her chest, she began to kick as the man above her applied more force, causing her to scream and cough at the same time. Ignoring the pain from her kicking, he continued to strangle her._

_Asia's kicking and screaming soon ceased. Her chest halted its rise and descend as a final thought went through her head._

_This strange, murderous man being in the same apartment as her virgin sixteen year-old child._

_~ * ~  
_

Momo's head snapped back up as she heard the door opened. Tensing, she looked at the female cop as she entered with a smile on her face.

"Are you feeling better?" she asked, kneeling in one leg in front of the paranoid teenager.

Momo nodded, lying and knowing that the officer knew about it, as she pulled her ripped shirt up, covering her blue bra.

Noticing that she was still wearing the ripped clothes and her undergarments were partially showing, the female officer stood up. "I'll get you some new clothes before any male sees you."

After seeing her nod, the cop left the girl alone again.

Even though she was still traumatized about what had happened hours ago, she was glad that it was a female cop helping her out and not a male one. She would faint in embarrassment if she had to tell a male all of the things that had occurred to her after the death of her mother.

More tears rained down her face as the cold fact hit her: her mother is dead.

~ * ~

_"The prostitute is dead and her child killed the murderer!"_

_"You think she killed her mother? I know she must feel embarrassed with her mother being a whore and all, but killing her own mother and her client was a little too extreme."_

_"According to police, she didn't kill her mother; the guy the slut was sleeping with killed her."_

_"So then, the slut's daughter killed the man? Whoa…."_

_"Seems like it…"_

_With a blanket wrapped around her injured body, Momo walked out of her apartment building with her head hung low and tears falling on the cold ground, avoiding everyone else's stares as she was lead into the officers' vehicle._

_She noticed the ambulance trucks still there, one of them carrying her mother while the other carried her mother's murderer._

~ * ~

"Here you go, sweetie."

Breaking her chain of thoughts, she looked up as the female cop handed her a bag. Momo looked questioningly at her.

"It's a blue tee-shirt, black sweat pants and black sneakers. Put it on. The bathroom's over there and if you need anything else, call me. I'll be right here."

Nodding, she got up, wincing at the pain on her bruised thighs, and headed to the bathroom. Once inside, she closed the door and locked it, though she didn't have to since the officer outside was a woman. As she began to take off her ripped and now useless clothes, memories came back to her again.

~ * ~

_Her body ached terribly as she sat on the back seat of the police car. Two officers were sitting in front while a female cop was sitting beside her, her arms wrapped around her shivering frame._

_She tried to control her sobs, not wanting to cry around three officers, but couldn't. Her mother's death and the beating the man had given her before she had finally taken him down were causing her tears to come out uncontrollably._

_She continued asking herself _why_ did this have to happen to her out of the billion people living on the planet. Her mother was dead and she had no relative at all._

_As the car halted in front of the police station, she put her head down as she noticed photographers being ushered out by the cops._

_"Did the girl kill her mother? Did she kill the man her mother was with?"_

_"How old is the girl and is she a whore like her mother?"_

_"Will the girl get life-in-prison for killing her mother and the man she was with?"_

_"Get out of here now before I lock all of you in!" the cop threatened._

_The nosy photographers stepped back, and as soon as they noticed the girl step out of the vehicle, they simultaneously began to take pictures. However, because she was covered with a blanket from head to toe, the photographers couldn't see her face or any part of her frame at all._

~ * ~

As soon as Momo finished putting on the new sets of clothes, she exited the bathroom with her ripped clothes in hand.

"Give me them. I'm going to look at them to see if there's anything else left from the man that attacked you."

Momo gave a slight nod as the officer grabbed her clothes and placed them inside a white basket.

The teenager didn't know how long she had been in the police station. She was first taken in to a room with three nurses and the same female cop that was attending her and together, they had inspected her body for anything.

Although Momo felt embarrassed being nude in front of the nurses (female, of course), she was fortunate not to have anything else but some serious bruises that they had treated.

Afterwards, they had left her alone for half an hour to gather her thoughts and to think about what had happened before questioning her about it, requested by the same female cop after noticing the horror expression on the girl's face.

And now, she had changed into a new set of clothes and was now waiting for an investigator to come in to ask her what had fully happened.

"Take a seat. Would you like something to drink? Eat?"

Momo shook her head, sitting back down on the chair she was sitting ten minutes ago. The officer grabbed a chair and sat in front of her.

"The investigator is coming in soon to ask you many questions, and you have to answer them so we can help you."

The brunette nodded understandingly.

"Also, since I searched your records and found that you have absolutely no relative. Your father is unknown and your mother was an orphan. Since I don't trust your mother's _friends_, I am putting you under foster care."

Momo tensed as the words went in one ear and quickly out the other. "Wh-What?"

"Foster care. Your mother's friends are _all_ prostitutes and all of them have horrible records. I can't send you to them if they're going to spend most of their time in bars and sleeping everyday with men. So, I'm putting you under foster care. I know that you're going to have a hard time getting over everything that had happened today, so I'm going to hand you over to a generous woman that I know. She was my foster parent and her name is Jenaline Quentery. So far, she has a fifteen year-old boy under her wing and that's it. She's in her mid fifties but a very caring woman. You'll love her."

Momo nodded, wanting to meet Jenaline already.

"I called Jenaline twenty minutes ago, so she should be here in twenty minutes. It's about a half an hour drive. But, in the meantime, I want you to be ready to answer everything the investigator asks you."

"A-Alright." she replied, though she wasn't sure herself whether she had the strength or not to answer all of the investigator's (whoever he or she was) questions.

At last, the door opened and a bald-headed man stepped inside with a black briefcase in one hand and his large glasses in the other.

"Good morning." the man greeted, walking further into the room.

The female cop greeted him back as Momo suddenly felt nauseous. The man, opening his briefcase and taking out a notepad and pen, grabbed a chair and sat in front of the nervous girl.

"Hello, Miss Hinamori. I'm Mark Ashton and before we start, I want to ask you if you feel comfortable with me asking you all of these questions so sudden."

Meekly, she nodded, another lie.

"Alright then, let's begin." he said. "Tell me everything that happened, from the beginning to the end."

The teenager gave a slight nod. Looking down at her bruised hands, released a sigh. "W-Well, m-my mom was working late at night….in the club…. I think it was around three in the morning when she came home with the man, a-and they started having sex… M-My mom probably thought I was asleep the whole time, but I was awake right after I heard her s-screaming…"

She wiped her tears away and continued telling the story, not wanting to look at the man before her.

"I-I stood behind the d-door, too scared to go out, b-but then he-he came into my r-room a-and…"

~ * ~

_Momo jumped back as the naked man entered her room, his chestnut-colored eyes widened. Swallowing hard, she walked back as the man jumped and pushed her down on her bed. A loud scream escaped her mouth as he crawled on top of her and began rip the shirt she was wearing as a pajamas top._

_She tried kicking the man, but couldn't as his whole weight was crushing her whole body. She felt his hardened sex organ by her thighs, causing her to shiver in disgust._

_Annoyed with her scream, he punched her mouth._

_Her head twisted to the side as he attacked her neck with his lips and placed his leg between her legs…_

~ * ~

Momo stopped and put her head down, hiding her face with her hands as she placed them before her, and shook her head.

"I think it's better for her to continue tomorrow."

Mark nodded in agreement and stood. "I'm sorry for what happened to you, Miss Hinamori. We can continue this some other time when you feel more comfortable."

Knowing that she wasn't going to reply to him, Mark packed everything up as the cop walked over to him.

"I'll call you when she feels better."

"Thanks, Amy."

Grabbing his suitcase, he said his goodbye to Momo (though not receiving no reply from the sobbing teenager) and opened the door to leave. To his surprise, Jenaline Quentery appeared out of nowhere.

"Jenaline, it's a pleasure to see you."

"Hello, Mark. Pleasure to see you too after all of these months. I see you finished with the girl."

"Actually, I stopped. She can't continue in the state she is in right now."

"Alright." Jenaline nodded. "I'm anxious to meet her. Amy told me about her and I'm excited to help her."

"She needs all the help she can get. Well, I'll see you some other time. Bye."

"Bye."

As Mark left, Jenaline walked inside and smiled at the cop. "Good morning, Amy."

"Good morning, Jenaline."

The officer stood and lead Jenaline towards Momo.

"Momo, this is Jenaline Quentery, she's going to be your foster parent."

Looking up, Momo saw the woman. She was around five-foot-three, in her mid-fifties, with gray hair and small green eyes. She gave a warming grin to Momo as she extended her hand out.

"Hello, Momo. My name is Jenaline Quentery and I'm going to be your foster parent."

Taking her hand out, Momo shook the woman's hand and said a weak hello. She sat quietly as the two women conversed with one another.

"You want me to drive her home first so she can pick up her stuff before taking her to my house?"

Amy pondered for a second, and Momo rose her head up to look at them.

"I want to get my stuff first."

Amy looked at her, surprised since this was the first time since Momo spoke voluntarily. Blinking, the cop sat next to her.

"Are you sure you want to go back to your apartment, especially to your room. Unwanted memories is going to come back."

The teenager nodded. "I know, but I need to get something. I don't want to leave it behind."

An image of her diary came up. No, she couldn't leave It behind.

"Alright then. I'll take you to your home first and then back to my house, where you'll consider your new home."

Momo nodded and stood, waiting for Jenaline to finish speaking with Amy. The ladies spoke about contacting one another later on and getting Momo a psychologist to help her with her problems, especially her quickly developing depression.

Momo wasn't too sure about having a psychologist. She was afraid of telling her problems to a stranger, and more importantly, she was afraid of being judged like the others.

~ * ~

_"Hey, isn't her mom a whore?"_

_"Yeah, and I bet her mom has a bunch of STDs in her nasty body."_

_"I bet Momo has Herpes or Syphilis as well. I mean, she is the daughter of a whore."_

~*~

"Come on, sweetie. Let's go." Jenaline said, touching her shoulder.

Startled, Momo nodded and followed Jenaline downstairs after saying her goodbye to Amy.

Her legs, specifically her thighs, ached as she walked downstairs. She stared at her surroundings and noticed how old fashioned the police station looked. A few officers stared at her, quickly recognizing her, and ashamed, she looked away.

Jenaline opened the door for Momo, giving her a motherly smile. Thanking her, Momo walked out of the station, glad to know that there weren't any photographers around.

But, she quickly stopped on her tracks as she noticed a large rottweiler right in front of her. She had no time to react as the large canine suddenly ran towards her and knocked her down to the ground. She tried to push the animal off her, afraid it'll bite her, as she heard a male voice nearby.

"Hyorinmaru, get off her!"

* * *

**I'm done!!!! So, what you guys think? OK, so I'll give you guys the basic: Momo's mother is a prostitute, Momo's father is unknown, and something happened between Momo and the man that murdered her mother. Well, he's dead but you guys don't know HOW he died. Oh, and BEFORE some of you start asking, in this story, well I'm explaining the setting next chapter, but in the setting, prostitution is legal. So, tell me what you think! Please don't alert without reviewing. I want to know EVERYONE'S opinion: good or bad.**

**REVIEW!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2! Thank you to y'all for leaving me awesome reviews! I'm sorry for the late chapter! Teachers _love _to give a batch of homework 2 weeks before we go on vacation, don't they? Well, I have homework DURING vacation too. So, bleeeeeeh. Anyway, this story will be different but somewhat the same as the first version; and for those who didn't read the first version, don't worry about it. This is a new version of the old one. Anyway, enjoy chapter 2 and leave me reviews!**

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* * *

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Momo stared at her diary, a feeling of joy rising through her still bruised body. Standing in the middle of her messy room, she didn't notice the boy walking in quietly. Opening the small book, she looked at each and every page, a smile appearing on her lips.

The nightmare of her mother's murderer assaulting her came to her memory as she gripped the diary tightly.

_"Open your legs, you little whore, just like your mother does!"_

_But Momo didn't. Her mother taught her better than that. Her mother always told her to never open her legs for every man on the street; in fact, she told her to look for a better future and not one where she has to sleep with a different man almost every single day, regardless of the money._

_"I said open them, you bitch!"_

_He punched her again, this time on her right thigh. Momo nibbled on her lips, refusing to scream._

_He grabbed her ankles, trying desperately to open her legs, but Momo refused. Taking a quick deep breath, she pulled her legs forward and kicked him right on the crotch._

_The man screamed, hands between his legs, as he stumbled off her bed. Taking her chance, she grabbed the lamp on her nightstand and with all of her force, hit him on the side of his head with it. Her small, sky-blue lamb shattered as the man collapsed on the floor, his hands on his head, screaming._

_Eyes widened, she stared down at the naked man as he yelled for help. Blood oozed out of the lateral and part of the posterior part of his head._

_She wondered whether she had killed him or not, and scared, she got up and ran to her mother's room._

"Momo,"

She turned in a swift motion, heart pounding fast as she uncontrollably raised her hand and smacked the boy behind her.

Feeling the harsh sting on his cheek, he stumbled backwards, his green-blue eyes widened.

"What was _that_ for?"

Momo froze on her spot, diary still in hands, as she saw the mark she left him on his cheek. It was _very_ noticeable compared to his pale-white skin.

"I-I'm sorry…. I wasn't paying attention and-"

He noticed the fear and regret in her eyes, and remembering what Jenaline had said before, he waved it off. "It's alright, don't worry about it."

Momo continued looking at Toushiro watchfully, feeling bad for smacking him out of nowhere just because she was deep in thought about what had happened more than twenty-four hours ago.

"Jenaline wanted to know if you were ready."

"O-Oh, yes I am."

Hurriedly, she scurried towards the two suitcases she had filled with her clothes. Toushiro grabbed one of her suitcases and walked downstairs, hearing the faint 'thank you' from behind.

Sighing and telling herself to calm down and not think about what happened before, she grabbed her suitcase and hurried out of the apartment.

Amy, the policewoman, had given her only two hours to pack up everything since the apartment was still closed for further investigation.

Momo knew that coming back for her belongings would trigger her depression and cause her pain to worsen, but she told herself what her mother would tell her every time she came home from school crying because people wouldn't stop calling her a slut - to be strong.

As soon as she was out of the apartment, she let go of the breath she had been holding, feeling her tears welling up as she felt as if she had just left her mother behind.

Other tenants stood behind their closed doors, watching the crying teenager pass by through the peephole.

They muttered to themselves what Momo's future would be like now that her mother was gone and she didn't have to live off by the dirty money.

"Here, let me help you."

Momo looked up and nodded faintly, giving him the suitcase. Toushiro placed the second suitcase in the trunk of the car and opened the door for her as Jenaline arrived with a box in her hands.

"I just came back from the Russian restaurant over there and bought something to eat for us three. Is everything ready, Momo?"

The girl nodded and Jenaline's smile widened. "I'm glad. Amy and I don't want you back here. We're working together to give you a new and better life."

"Thanks," she mumbled, ignoring the stare Toushiro was giving her from her peripheral vision.

She sat down on the back seat, feeling the hard cover of her diary, as Jenaline sat on the passenger seat and Toushiro drove away. Hyorinmaru sat beside her with his head out the window, not minding the stranger sitting next to him, and Momo was glad.

She had always been terrified of rottweilers. Shifting closer to the window next to her, she watched the dog carefully, hoping it wouldn't jump on her again.

* * *

Half an hour later, they had arrived back at Jenaline's picturesque home. The house was large and beautiful. Momo had been amazed at how pristine the woman's front lawn looked and simply could not wait until she saw her backyard. A small pond sat a few feet away from the house, and Momo saw a few fish there. Circling the pond was a ring of daisies, tulips, and sunflowers. Barely any leaves were seeing on the front lawn, and to Momo, it looked perfect. Her mom would've loved the garden.

Momo snapped out of it once she noticed Toushiro bringing one of her suitcases inside the house. Rushing to the trunk, she grabbed the second suitcase while Jenaline made sure Hyorinmaru wouldn't get near her, sensing Momo's fear of the large dog.

The inside of the house was more beautiful, and Momo was amazed at how organized Jenaline was with things. The living room was big with warm bronze-colored couches, a coffee table in the middle, a large screen TV, and breath-taking artifacts (pictures, vases, small sculptures, etc…). Sitting on window sills were small plants, and by the corner of the living room sat a large Chamaedorea plant.

"My mom loves plants…."

"Really? Was she an environmentalist?"

Momo turned around, startled that Jenaline had heard her comment about her mother's obsession with plants, and gave the woman a questioning yet sorrow look.

"You don't need to go to college to become an environmentalist. Does your mom like _going green_?"

Shyly, she nodded, remembering how her mother would love to recycle bottles, buy plants, and use organic products.

"Yes, she did."

"That's good. It's important to keep our environment clean."

She took off the leash from Hyorinmaru's collar and led him outside to the backyard.

"Your room is one door away from Toushiro's. Come, I'll show you."

Together, they climbed the flight (which was about fifteen steps), and as they did, Momo couldn't help but appreciate the beauty yet modern-theme the house had. It had a 1920s style that definitely intrigued her.

Once reaching the second floor, they made a slight turn and were met with an opened door. Toushiro was already inside, opening one of the windows so the room would get some fresh air.

It was big, Momo commented, and beautiful. A cover-less bed rested on the right side of the room, a desk in between both windows, a closet on the left side of the room and a long mirror attached on the wall beside it. The room was simple, which was something she liked.

"This will be your room, but if you don't like it, there is another empty room you can take."

"No, this is fine actually." she responded, giving the woman half a smile.

"Alright. I have some new sheets in my closet for your bed. I'll give you time to unpack and get used to your new room. When you're finished, come downstairs and I'll have dinner ready for you. The dining room is right between the kitchen and living room, not hard to find."

The teenager nodded understandingly, watching Jenaline and Toushiro leave, closing the door as they proceeded. Once she was alone, she sat down on the bed and led her tears out. She opened her diary and read the last thing she had written before the accident. She had written about meeting a girl in school, but because of the rumors going around, the girl did not want to be seen in public with her.

Deciding to organize everything later, Momo laid down on her new bed and sobbed quietly, fearing that Toushiro or Jenaline would hear her and as her mind concentrated more on Toushiro, a small blush crept to her cheeks.

The boy was stoic. Not only did he barely show any emotions, but he looked as if he didn't care about a thing. She previously learned that he was around the same age as her but nothing more, and he looked like a big mystery book to her. When she had first laid her eyes on him (seconds after his dog had jumped on her), she had quickly noticed how good looking he was; especially with those outstanding green-blue eyes.

_"You like the boy, don't you?"_

_"I…um.. Yeah, I do. I like him."_

_"Then why don't you start talking to him? Get to know him."_

_"I don't want to. He thinks I'm a whore."_

_"I'm so sorry…."_

She recalled the conversation she had with her mother years ago, when she was just thirteen. She had a crush on a red-headed boy, however, after learning about her mother's reputation, the boy had accompanied other people on calling her names as well. Momo remembered how awful her mother felt, but Momo had reassured her not to worry. It was only a crush that had lasted for five days. Closing her diary, she decided to go downstairs for dinner.

The house was quiet as she went down the flight of stairs. She took a good look around again, capturing the house's beauty and imagining her mother's gorgeous smile if she ever saw it.

Toushiro was already sitting by the table, eating, and Jenaline was preparing her plate. Momo stared at the two for a few seconds, telling herself that they would be her new family. Jenaline acted like the grandmother Momo never had, and Toushiro…. She wasn't sure whether she wanted to label him as a brother, cousin, or even a friend, and she pondered whether he would be her friend, or another person teasing person.

"Here, sit down and eat." Jenaline stated, pointing to the yummy-looking plate laying on the table.

Quietly, she sauntered towards the table and sat down in front of the table, taking the quickest glance towards Toushiro before picking up her fork.

It was awkward. The more she was around his presence, the more scared she felt. Was he single? Does he have a girlfriend? Does he think she's a whore? _What_ does he think about her?

_Don't look up at him. Don't look up at him. Stop shaking. He'll know that you're uncom-_

Momo dropped her fork as she felt something wet lick her leg. Her eyes widened, thinking of what could possibly be licking her. Looking underneath the table, she shrieked as she noticed Hyorinmaru sniffling her leg. Jenaline looked at her as she halted what she was doing and went over to the panicked girl. Toushiro got up and grabbed his dog by the collar, taking it away from Momo.

"Momo, don't worry. He doesn't bite." Jenaline reassured her, stroking her shoulder.

Shame fell on her as she saw Toushiro take his dog back outside. Because of her fear of dogs, she (a stranger to it) had caused the poor thing to be kicked out from a room where he probably loved to be in.

"I'm sorry." she apologized, Jenaline and Toushiro looking at her questioningly. "You can bring him back inside. I-I'll go back to my room and finish unpacking."

"Don't be, Momo. He'll just stay outside for a while. Besides, he's not allowed to be in the dining room while we're eating."

But Momo _still_ felt awful. She resumed eating with Jenaline, feeling guilty throughout as she noticed how Toushiro had never continued eating and instead had gone up to his room.

After "dinner", Momo had put away all of her belongings and taken a nice refreshing shower inside her own bathroom (she was glad to have her own). Afterwards, Jenaline had come in and told her about being enrolled in Toushiro's high school tomorrow.

Momo didn't want to go to any school: she preferred being home schooled for the rest of her life. That way, she would stop hearing everybody's opinion about her.

As the night proceeded on, she thought about her new school, the people she would meet, and whether she would get to have something she never had before: a friend.

* * *

"The test was so easy! I definitely got an A on that!"

"That's because you have smarts!"

-

"That dumb teacher gave us too much homework."

"That's because he's preparing us for that important test that's in a month, smarty!"

-

"What was served for lunch today?"

"The nastiest shit on Earth. You don't even want to look at it."

-

Momo stared at the students as they walked back and forth, chatting about everything: boys, girls, movies, music, marriage, sex, drugs, tests, teachers, jokes, careers….

Jenaline was still inside the principal office, speaking with the woman about Momo's life. She had asked her foster mom if she could wait outside, feeling embarrassed for hearing her own story from someone else's view.

The school resembled a community college in her opinion. It had two large parking lots, one for faculty and the other for students. Second, third, and fourth floors were strictly for classes while the first floor was only for the offices and clubs, as well as the school's gymnasium and three cafeterias.

Staring at other students and how great they socialized gave her hope for a new beginning. Maybe she can start new, have friends, and never let anybody else bring her down.

"Excuse me, sweetie."

She turned her head and saw a dark-skin boy standing behind her, giving her a slight smile. Momo gave him a questioning look, but then realized that she was standing in front of his locker.

"Oh-I'm s-sorry."

"Don't worry about it, honey."

She moved aside and watched him as he unlocked his locker. He had a baby-blue tote bag on his right shoulder and she didn't miss the sight of the L'Oreal makeup case inside. He wore khaki skinny jeans with a blue shirt and white Nike shoes.

Upon sensing her staring at him, he turned his head and raised a perfectly-waxed brow.

"Is…something wrong, babe?"

"O-Oh, n-n-o… I just like your bag…and your makeup."

The boy giggled, extending his hand out to her. "Thanks, babe. I'm Jonathan, but call me Johnny."

"I'm Momo."

"Momo? I love your name, babe!"

Momo giggled, her cheek coloring. "Thanks."

"No problem, babe. And if you were wondering, yes, I am gay."

* * *

**- Ho Finito! That means I'm finished in italian xD Anyway, sorry for taking so long. Blame it on school. So, this fic. is very different and I added a homosexual character in here. This way, I will show everybody (well, you guys will read) how gay teens are sometimes treated in school and all of you know that I'm bisexual, (and if you didn't, SURPRISE! lol), and I have been discriminated before. Someone called me a bisexual freak and some students have even said nasty things to me in front of my face: and it's not only to me. This happens to other homosexual person as well, and all of that bad experience will be included in this fic. Jonathan will face discrimination in this story so people can read what it's like to be discriminated just because of something so little and that no one should be making a big deal out of. **

**- Agh, it's so cold in my room. I have found the most retarded song in the world... it's a rap song....and it's called "You're a Jerk". Have you guys ever heard of that song? If you haven't, save your ears and don't. It's a lame song that constantly raps about you being a jerk...for like 3 or 4 minutes.... now that's annoying. -_-;**

**REVIEW!  
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	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter three! Thank you for the reviews and I'm sorry for the late up-date. I have too much hw and other things to do. I miss my old self when I had less things to do =( but I'm not going to give up on FFN just cuz I'm too busy. Anyway, I finally finished my Naruto fic. so now I have more time on this fic!!!! Enjoy & Review!**

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_Dear Diary…_

_Today is my first day of school, and like any other teenager out there starting a new school, I am nervous. I don't want people to get a bad impression of me. I want to have friends that I can count on without having them judging me because of my mother's reputation; and I guess my goal at friendship started out well since I already met a friend. His name is Johnny and he's gay. I never had a homosexual friend before (well, I had no friends back then), but I always wanted to have one. They seem like nice people. I have to go now. Jenaline's going to drive me and Toushiro to school today. I'll write later. Bye_

_- M.H._

_

* * *

_Momo stared at the tall building as she saw the students entered - either alone or with a group of their own.

Toushiro got out of the car with his school bag on one hand and a sports bag, which read _**Sereitei Track Team**_, and headed inside the crowded building.

She didn't realize she was staring at him _a bit too much_ until he turned his head and looked at her, a slender white brow jerked up questioningly. Blushing, she turned her head and walked towards the main entrance.

Holding her schedule tightly in her hand, she stared at every unfamiliar faces. A wave of anxiety hit her as she looked at her first class.

_Advanced Biology… Rm 315_

Taking a deep breath, she headed up the staircase. Some students looked at her and immediately took notice that she was a new girl in school, and this only meant one thing to Momo: everyone knew one another.

Reaching the third floor, she opened the door and looked at the numbers above the doors.

_308.…309..._

Turning left, she walked towards her assigned room.

* * *

"How has she been doing so far?"

Jenaline looked up from her cup of tea and stared at Amy Baze's large eyes. The woman waited patiently for her answer.

"So far, she's doing OK. However, she's terribly afraid of dogs, especially of Toushiro's rottweiler."

"Hyorinmaru? That dog doesn't even hurt a fly….unless told so."

"Exactly, but the poor girl is afraid of dogs. Hopefully she'll become fond of it. Besides the whole dog dilemma, she also had a nightmare last night. She thought that the same guy that molested her was there in her room."

"I don't blame her for having nightmares. No woman in her lifetime wants to be abused…especially by a man who's way older."

Jenaline nodded. "She needs therapy. Her mother just died, she was abused, and making friends isn't something she's specialized in. However, she did meet a sweet boy yesterday?"

"Really?"

"Yes. A homosexual boy from her new school. While I spoke to the principal and her guidance counselor, she and Jonathan spoke for a bit. He gave her his cell phone number and email. They spoke last night for half an hour and she even laughed when he explained to her why he ditched his ex-boyfriend."

Amy chuckled. "I'm glad she met somebody, but does the boy know about her mother's reputation?"

With a single shake of her head, Jenaline placed the tea cup on the coffee table. "No, she hasn't told him yet. I think she's not going to tell him at all. She's afraid of losing him."

"But eventually he'll find out. Journalists are already releasing the story about Momo, her mother, and the man and people are going to find out, especially by the internet. You know how the internet works."

"I know… That poor child. I also received papers this morning from the court. The man that tried to rape Momo….his wife is suing her."

Amy almost chocked on her tea as her eyes widened, giving Jenaline a surprised look. "What?! Is that woman out of her mind!? Why would she even think about suing a poor girl who was molested by the pig of her husband?!"

"It angered me too." Jenaline said, trying her best to control her anger. "A poor child is molested by some disgusting old man and his _wife_ is on his side of the case? It amazes me that there's still some brainless people in this world."

"When is Momo going to court?"

"She has to go Saturday morning. I'm definitely going with her. I'm not going to let that woman sue Momo just because she was protecting herself from that man-whore, excuse my language."

Amy gave her a 'don't worry about it' look as she resumed drinking her tea. The door opened and Toushiro came in, hands buried deep inside pockets.

"You're early," Jenaline turned her head to him, "What happened to track practice?"

"Got canceled. Coach had to go home early." He gave a brief nod to Amy greeting-ly before heading off towards his room.

Amy's eyes met Jenaline's. "What's his reaction towards Momo living here?"

"He hasn't said anything about her so far, but I _think_ he's a bit irritated over the fact that his dog can't stay in the house too long since Momo's afraid of it and I'm afraid he'll bite her. That dog can be violent when angered."

As soon as the words escaped her lips, the door opened again and a tensed Momo came in.

"Hi" she said, looking from Jenaline to Amy.

"Hello, Momo how was your first day at school?"

Momo sat down beside the officer before she replied her question. "It was OK."

"Did you make any friends?"

"One so far. His name's Jonathan."

"Jenaline told me about him. How is he?"

"He's incredibly nice. He's my age and loves to draw. Unfortunately, some of the kids at school like to make fun of him just 'cause he's gay. He doesn't have many friends though… and those considered to be his "friends" don't know a lot about him."

"Homosexuals are discriminated everywhere… It's a shame that they have to go through a lot today and still be one of the happiest people in the world."

Momo nodded, thinking about her own happiness. Unlike her, Jonathan was optimistic about life and he knew that one day he would be happy.

_Maybe that's how I should be? Maybe I should give myself hope?_

Her body trembled as she thought of her mother. She was still waiting for the hospital to call her regarding her mother's death.

"Momo,"

Breaking her thoughts, she looked up at the older woman as Jenaline sighed. Something was wrong.

"A court paper came today."

Momo's furrowed eyebrows relaxed a little. "It must be for my mother's death-"

"Not really. That one is coming once your mother's autopsy is finished. This one is because of the man's wife."

"What man?"

Jenaline arched an eyebrow. "The man that tried to take advantage of you…. His name is Lobert Thang. His wife, Eslein Thang, is suing you for murdering him."

"…B-But I was just protecting myself!? He killed my mother and then went after me!? He was touching me and he was ready to-to-"

Amy placed a soothing arm on her shoulders. "Don't worry. Jenaline and I will make sure nothing happens to you. That woman's crazy and I can bet that the only reason why she's suing you is because she needs money since her _husband_ is dead for molesting a child."

Jenaline nodded in agreement, but Momo put her head down and stared at her hands. She felt dirty for taking away a person's life; but what else could she have done? He was taking advantage of her after he had killed her mother. Momo had never meant to kill the man; just wanted him to get off her. She just wanted him to get away and not hurt her.

She looked up as soon as she felt Toushiro's stare on her. His blue-green eyes fixed on her as she shifted on the couch uncomfortably.

_Why is he staring at me?_

"I have homework to do." she said, standing up and grabbing her black tote bag.

The women stared at her back as she walked up the stairs, pass Toushiro, and towards her room.

His gaze had made her uneasy and she didn't know what he was thinking about after finding out that she had killed a man.

Just even repeating that thought made her shiver. She knew she wasn't facing any real trouble since she did it just to protect herself, but she was afraid of what the others thought of her now. Especially Toushiro.

Momo couldn't stand seeing him.

"Wait,"

Speaking of the devil…

The teen froze in her place, giving her back to him, as she slowly turned her head and looked at him questioningly. Toushiro stood a good three feet away from her with his hands buried deep inside his pockets, his face expressionless, and his beautiful eyes gleaming as he unblinkingly stared at her.

"Y-Yeah?"

His gaze narrowed, making him look a bit dangerous yet handsome.

"Is it true you killed that man?"

Her eyes widened at the unexpected question. Her heart pounded faster as the words swirled around her head without even telling herself that it was for protection.

Killed a man….

She felt a big lump on her throat that she couldn't get rid of. She wanted to run inside her room and cry, but couldn't. Not in front of him. He would laugh at her and call her a murderer….would he?

She rose her head up and met his gaze, her eyes swelling with tears. "Yes, I did. B-But…"

Momo couldn't finish explaining why she had done it. Memories of the man's naked body came to her head as she recalled his blood on her polished floor.

"You did it out of protection, right?" he asked, and this time, he was closer to her.

Momo nodded before raising her head and meeting his emotionless gaze. Her cheeks turned pink as he just stared at her.

He made her uneasy.

Finally, he let out a sigh and scratched the back of his head. "Look, I didn't mean to make you upset… I'm sorry."

Without replying, Momo continued looking at him. Toushiro took a step forward and placed a hand on her flushed cheek.

"Just don't blame yourself for it. You did what you had to do. It's either that or death."

But Momo didn't pay attention to his words as she breathed in his scent. He pinched her cheek childishly, the end of his mouth rising in a half smirk before he turned around and left.

And still, Momo continued to stare.

* * *

_Next Day…_

It was twenty minutes before first period started and the Jonathan and Momo were in the school cafeteria, eating breakfast and talking about each other's parents. And as Johnny explained to her how his parents were, she felt as if she could trust him and tell him about her only parent.

"Your father beat you?"

"Babe, that man did more than just beat me. Every single day, he had a new punishment for me. And he wasn't alone. Whenever my uncles or cousins came, they would get a belt and hit me so I could've stopped acting like a woman."

"What did your mother do?"

"She doesn't believe in homosexuality, but because I was her only child, she couldn't stand seeing me get punished like that from my family. She told my father to stop, but that just made everything worse. Soon, he started beating her too. He would call her a whore and every time she did something wrong or thought she was being unfaithful to him, he would grab the belt and hit her. I love my mother and every time he would put his hands on her, I stepped in and defended her like a true man. But that just caused me to get beat up even more."

Momo dropped her gaze to her lap. "I can't believe your father would do such thing…and just because you're gay."

Johnny shrugged. "Our world is a very cruel world. You'd think that after the civil rights and holocaust, we would be kinder to our own kind. Bullshit! There's still sexism, racism, and discrimination going on."

"I know what you mean, but what happened to your father? You told me that you live with your mother now."

"I do. That alcoholic bastard of my father tried to get his freak on with a little seven-year-old girl. Lucky for the girl, her father had seen my father pick up his daughter and throw her against a bush, ready to rape her. The girl's father was so furious that before the bastard of my father tried to lift the girl's dress, he knocked my father out and beat the crap out of him. A person walking by saw everything and immediately called the police. About two weeks later, the little girl was sent to counseling since she was afraid of leaving even her own room, and I don't blame her. Her father was not charged for breaking my father's nose, arm, and ribs and he was seen as a hero too. As for my father, he's spending sixty years in jail for attempt of rape towards and kidnapping a minor as well as abusing both my mother and I. My mother had the courage to go to the police a day after he was first arrested. And now that he's finally gone, my mother and I have the best relationship ever."

A heartwarming smile crawled towards her features as she patted his arm. "I'm glad that everything came out the best for you and your mother."

"Thanks, so am I. And what about you? Babe, I barely know anything about you except your name and age."

Momo put her head down embarrassingly, playing with her fingers. "I…I don't think you want to know about my life. I feel ashamed."

"Honey, don't. Nobody has the 'perfect family'. Are you afraid of what I'm going to say after you tell me?"

"Mhmm…"

"Well, it'll depend on how your family is, but that doesn't mean I'll turn my back on you for the mistakes that your parents or relatives did to you."

Momo lifted her head up again and stared at her half-eaten bagel. "My mother was a prostitute. I was made fun on in my old school because of it. One-Third of the students' father had slept with my mother at one point and since they were all aware of what she did, they thought that I joined her too. They called me a whore and the boys would sometime pay me to give them a….you know what. But I never did. My mother, although she was a stripper and a prostitute, always told me to treat myself with respect and to not let people touch me. She taught me self-respect."

Johnny smiled. "Your mother seems awesome. What about your father?"

Momo shrugged. "I don't know who my father is. But my mom told me once that if I was very curious to know who my father was, I could go to the stripper club where she works at since that's where they met. The strippers, who can have sex with their customers as well, write down their names and addresses since some of them only pay half of what they're supposed to or incase they want to come back."

"Did you ever want to meet your father?"

Momo nodded. "I always wanted to meet my father, and I still do. I asked my mother about my father before, but then I stopped because I saw the hurt in my mom's eyes every time I mentioned him to her. She was afraid that I would leave her for my father."

"Why?"

"People called me a whore just because she was a prostitute. She was tired of seeing me without any friends. That's why."

"That's just awful. It seems to me as people can't stop being ignorant for a second, especially when coming to someone who, under the law, is still a child."

Momo sighed, her shoulders dropping. "I know…but I try to not let things like that get to me, but it's very hard when people around you gossip a lot and sometimes even add untrue things into it."

"True what you just said, but don't give up hope just because people decide to become real assholes over things that aren't even their business."

The first bell rang, indicating students to prepare for their first period. Johnny and Momo threw out their garbage and headed out to the soon crowding hall.

As soon as they were out, Momo caught site of Toushiro talking and smiling with his friends. Three boys and one girl hung around him, and even though she couldn't tell what they were talking about, she noticed how they were all having a good time. She turned her head for a few seconds, hoping she would get distracted with something else, but turned it back to look at him one more time. And when she did, she saw him looking straight at her with his smile still plastered on his face. He tilted his head slightly in a greeting manner and in return, she waved her hand at him before following Johnny down the hall, her cheeks flushed.

-

"I saw that?"

"Saw what?"

"How you blushed when he looked at you…."

Johnny pinched her cheek before she playfully slapped his hand away.

"He's just a friend….and a housemate."

Johnny arched an eyebrow at that, taking out his mirror and checking out his makeup.

"Mhmm, friend now, boyfriend later."

-

The rest of the day went by quickly, and for the first time, Momo smiled for the entire day. Even a surprise quiz that her history teacher had given the whole class to see if they had been reading didn't stop her from smiling (in addition to her passing the quiz).

Once she was home after school, she completed her homework and read the letter the doctors had sent her concerning her mother's death and whether or not she wanted her mother to be cremated. Momo couldn't imagine her mother getting burned into ashes. The thought crept her out. What if her mother wasn't _really_ dead but alive and woke up while they were burning her?

_You're being ridiculous! You just don't want her to be burned into ashes! _

Sighing, she had put away the papers and decided to make her decision later on with the help of Jenaline.

But now, she had other things to worry about…

* * *

The weekend came quickly, and before she knew it, it was Saturday.

Standing in front of the female judge, Momo felt Amy's hand on top of her shoulder reassuringly. Jenaline stood on her left side, watching as the judge looked over at the papers. Toushiro waited outside the courthouse in the car, and it made her feel embarrassed to know that he was here because she was being sued for murder.

Weren't murderers supposed to go to jail?

The doors opened and in came Eslein Thang with an officer following behind. Standing at five-foot-seven with short dyed blond hair and dark-brown eyes and horrible acne, she walked into the room until she stood two yards away from the judge.

Momo looked at her anxiously, wondering what she would say to her.

Eslain straightened her jacket and finally turned to her, her face stern. "You murdering bitch! You killed my husband!"

Momo bit her bottom lip and looked down, not feeling the strength to stand up for herself. She felt the Eslein's husband's hands on her, and even though it was all in her head, she couldn't help but quiver.

"Excuse me," the judge said loudly, "but speaking like that to a minor will only make things worse for you."

"But she killed-"

"Quiet now before I kick you out of here."

Eslein closed her mouth and glared at the teenager, but since Momo still had her head down, she received a glare of her own from Jenaline instead.

* * *

**I'm finished! So, what do you guys think of the chapter? Was it good? Anyway, onto other things. So, I'm sure all of you HitsuHina lovers are pissed off at Kubo right now...unless you didn't read the manga and have no freaking idea what I'm talking about. When I read that chapter, I was shocked-pissed-sad.... damn... But hopefully everything turns out for the best. I'm just baffled over how strong Aizen is.... He looks unbeatable. **

**Anyway, I slipped on snow today! :D Don't I always? I also got hit on the leg with a hockey stick. Some girls need to learn that the hockey stick is supposed to be on the flooooooor, but no some smarty had to run after the puck with the stick up and it hit me right on the leg... hard. That was a week ago and it still hurts when I touch it. Those hockey sticks can kill somebody o.O**

**Did I make Johnny's past too harsh? It's stuff that happens in life and unfortunately, this happens a lot. Well, I'll try to update faster next time!!!!!!!!  
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**REVIEW!  
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	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4!! Thank you to all that read & reviewed the story. I know my updates are extremely slow, but school and other things are piling on my back. I want to update every week but you think teachers give breaks? Besides, I have a lot of club events to do after school and when I come home, I sleep, then do homework, study, do chores, take medicine to make myself drowsy (I'm not really supposed to do that, but if I don't, then I don't sleep at all), and then sleep and wake up next day and go to school and blaaaaaaaaaah. Anyway, enough about it. Enjoy & Review!**

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_Dear Diary,_

_I won the case! The judge said that what I had done was simply for protection and the man had a horrible record of murder and theft. The woman, Eslein I think her name was, was shocked when she learned that her "husband" had once been questioned for the murder of his ex-wife. Now that I think of it, I'm ambivalent whether the woman was shocked whether he had been questioned for murder or that he was married before. And now that I think of the man's past, it still shocks me that my mom had slept with men like him. After we left the court, Jenaline took Toushiro and me to a restaurant (she didn't feel like cooking that day). I'm going way out of my head with the situation now, but I can't stop feeling nervous when I'm with Toushiro. When Jenaline left to the bathroom, Toushiro started staring at me and I accidentally kicked him underneath the table. His expression was funny and priceless, but I still felt like a moron. His eyes are so gorgeous and every time he looks at me and semi-smiles (or smirks), I think he likes me but I remember what my mom had once said to me: don't interpret body language for your own satisfaction. So, for now, I have to pretend that he doesn't like me and that I barely know him….even though he sleeps two doors away from m_e.

_- M.H._

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* * *

_

"I think he likes you."

"I'm not making predictions. I don't want to please myself by over thinking things."

Johnny nodded, putting away his eyeliner. "You're right. But I still think that you two make a cute couple."

They strolled down the leafy path, letting the flustering wind dance around them. Johnny wore a hot-pink T-shirt with skinny white jeans and black fashionable ballet flats while Momo wore a knee-length Spring blue skirt that hugged her waist and waved neatly around her knee area with a white V-neck shirt and black flats.

Momo thought about what Johnny had recently said, a light oblivious blush decorating itself across her cheeks. She stared ahead and noticed Jenaline sitting at the park's bench with one of her colleagues and Hyorinmaru lying down, sleeping, in front of them while Toushiro was playing volleyball with many of his friends.

The day was gorgeous, the sun's warmth just right and wind giving freshness to the day. Yes, it was a gorgeous day….

"Ah shit!"

Laughter was suddenly heard and Momo turned her head, shocked to see Toushiro lying on the ground with his hand on his groin. Ichigo Kurosaki, one of guys he had been playing with, was laughing while asking the white-haired teen if he was all right. The other guys, whom consisted of Renji Abarai and five others that Momo didn't know yet, were all standing my Toushiro while, of course, laughing.

Jenaline, looking concerned, quickly got up and walked over to the group. "What happened?"

"His family jewels were smashed by the ball." one of the unfamiliar boys explained, smirking.

"How?"

"Ichigo was going to spike the ball at him, and Toushiro being the shortest one here, jumped trying to hit it back. But unfortunately, Ichigo's very tall and he hit the ball with a lot of force and it went right to his dic-"

Jenaline rose her hand up, not wanting to hear the teen's foul language.

"Toushiro, are you all right?"

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine." he said, looking up and first looking at Momo as she and Johnny walked towards the group.

Toushiro's friends noticed Johnny and looked away, laughing at an inside joke.

"Hey Snowman, want the fag over here to rub your disco-stick so it can feel better?"

Toushiro sent a glare towards the boy who said that and Momo noticed Johnny turn around the leave.

"Please don't be disrespectful towards other people, especially when you don't know them." Jenaline said, glaring at the teen.

The boy kept quiet, not wanting to argue with her and tell her that Johnny was the laughing stock at school.

Once Jenaline noticed that Toushiro was all right, she walked away.

His green-blue eyes met hers again but this time, Momo did not blush. Instead, she narrowed her eyes and walked after Johnny.

Toushiro stood up but never stopped looking at her, ignoring his friends' teasing remarks.

-

"Johnny, are you all right? I'm sorry about the remark."

The boy shrugged his shoulders, grabbing a red-yellow leaf and staring at it. "This leaf is so different from any other leaves, but yet again, it's the same thing: a leaf. We don't call it anything else but a leaf."

Momo stayed quiet, knowing where he was going with this.

"I'm different from everybody else, but yet again, I'm still human. Why do people treat me like if I'm some new discovered species who offends everybody?"

"They're just ignorant and homophobic."

"I know they are, but they can't at least keep their stupid comments to themselves."

The girl sat beside him, placing her hand on his shoulder. "The only reason they say it out loud is just to make you sad, but you can't give them that satisfaction. Do what you're always saying: keep your head up and don't let those aimless comments get to your head!"

He turned his head and laughed, placing his head on her shoulder. "I knew you were my best friend for a reason, babe."

_Best friend…. _

The idea puzzled Momo, mainly because she never had a true friend like Johnny. Even though she was still disappointed and depressed about her mother (and was still waiting for that excruciating letter from the hospital), Johnny had kept her happy and smiling most of the times for the past few days.

Leaning her back against the bench, she wrapped her arm around Johnny's shoulders and stroked his arm the same way her mom used to.

* * *

After the short visit to the park, Momo, Toushiro, and Jenaline headed home. Hyorinmaru strolled beside Toushiro, randomly stopping and sniffing whatever object (mostly trash) he saw.

Momo kept a safe distance away from the dog, glancing at it every few seconds and hoping that it wouldn't stride near her.

Laying a few yards away, the house looked picturesque. With the beautiful lawn and flowers, it stood out against the other houses.

But what surprised Momo was the group of people with cameras in their hands standing in front of Jenaline's home, as if waiting for someone. And quickly, a bad feeling went through her body and she halted her steps.

"Are those photographers?" she asked, glancing at her foster parent.

"More like annoying journalists wanting to know how your life has been. I knew something like this would happen."

"Can you tell them to leave, please? I don't want them to see me." Momo felt Toushiro's gaze on her, but she ignored it as she stared at the news reporters.

"Stay here with Toushiro. Better of, walk inside that store over there you too and when you see that they're gone, come out. I'll take Hyorinmaru with me to speak to them."

Toushiro wasted no time and crossed the street to where a mini-market laid with Momo trailing behind him. He opened the door for her and started scrutinizing as she entered and watched Jenaline from the large window.

-

"Excuse me, but what's going on here?"

The four reporters immediately turned around but before they huddled around her, they took a step back as an admonishingly growl escaped from Hyorinmaru.

'Ma'am, is it true that Momo Hinamori is living with you in this house?!" a blond hazel-eyed reporter inquired, her notepad and pen already in hand.

"Is it true that Momo Hinamori works as a prostitute?"

"Is it true that Momo Hinamori killed both her mother and her mother's client the other night?!"

"Where do you guys get these ridiculous assumptions from?" Jenaline questioned, glaring at all of them.

"All of them are from the girl's previous neighbors and classmates at her school!" replied the fourth reporter. "The public wants to know the aftermath of both murders!"

"Well, tell the _public_ to leave Ms. Hinamori alone and whatever happened already happened. You people need to leave the poor girl alone."

The blond reporter stepped forward, but quickly stepped back as Hyorinmaru growled again. "Ma'am, two murders took place and the public needs to know if there's a murderer neighboring them!"

"Momo Hinamori is not a murderer nor a prostitute. That's all you need to know and that's all you bastards are going to get! Now get away from my house before you regret it!"

But the reporters didn't want to give up. In fact, if it wasn't for Hyorinmaru's loud barking and growling, they would've annoyed Jenaline with more outrages questions.

-

Momo stared at the way Jenaline handled the pesky reporters, a small grin on her face. She couldn't wait until they left, but even if they did, that did not mean that they wouldn't be back. In fact, Momo was afraid of walking out the house now. What if they started acting like those annoying paparazzi? What if they followed her to school and questioned every student at school about her?

She had wanted everything to be a secret, but when two murder occurs and a teenager is involved, it becomes the story of the year.

Toushiro stood next to her, also waiting for the reporters to leave. Sending quick glances to him, she noticed his annoyed expression. Right away, she knew that he wasn't going to like the way random reporters were going to show up to his home just to ask annoying questions.

"I think they're leaving." Momo stated, hoping he would lighten up… at least a little bit.

Instead, Toushiro closed his eyes and walked out of the store, acting as if she was invisible. Momo's heart sunk.

She exited right after him but looked around first, making sure they were completely gone.

And they were….for now.

-

With her inside and the door locked, she felt a wave of relief travel through her body. Jenaline was busy getting ready for supper while Toushiro threw himself on the couch and started watching the latest soccer game.

_Typical men_, she thought, smiling as she remember her mother telling her how men were sometimes so preoccupied with their games that they forget about everything.

Her mother…

Momo frowned as she recalled the amazing time they had. Unlike her, her mother was an expert when coming to fashion. Every time they had gone to the mall, she would help Momo pick out gorgeous outfits and she even commented on Momo having a better body than what she had when she was a teen.

"Are you OK?"

"Huh?"

Toushiro's eyes narrowed. "Are you all right?"

"Oh-um yeah I'm fine…"

"You were spacing out and looked sad. Thinking about your mother?"

She nodded and sat down beside him, though leaving a big space between them. "I'm still trying to get used to this new lifestyle."

"You'll get used to it eventually."

"I know I will, but it takes time. Is this how you felt when you first came here."He turned his head and gave her a duh stare, and embarrassed she glanced away. "Sorry, stupid question."

"You mean stupid people…"

Astonished, but not offended, she turned her head and gaped at him. "I'm not stupid!"

The end of his lips rose. Oh, he was going to enjoy this. "You asked a stupid question, therefore you _are_ stupid."

"One who calls another stupid is stupid himself."

He cocked an eyebrow. "Who the hell quoted that?"

"I just did."

He snorted and turned his head back to the screen, watching as his favorite soccer player scored another goal.

"Don't snort at me."

"I just did." he added playfully.

She grabbed one of the sofa cushions and threw it at him, hitting him right on the head. His eyes widened surprisingly.

"Did you just hit me?"

"Obviously, _stupid_. Nobody else is around but me." Momo was beginning to enjoy this.

He grabbed the same sofa cushion and threw it back at her, making straight contact with her face. She murmured a low "ow" and playfully glared at him. She grabbed the cushion but before she could've set her eyes on him, he grabbed her wrists and threw her on the floor. Momo let out a playful yelp as she landed on her bottom.

A handsome, playful smirk arose to his features, but immediately faded away as Momo grabbed his forearms and pulled him down with her. Toushiro gasped at her strength and was suddenly on the floor as well.

Momo's childish giggles lingered in his head, causing him to stop for a second and stare at her. But that was a fatal mistake. Momo grabbed the cushion and threw it at him again, laughing as it caused him to fall back.

"Shit!"

"Got you twice now!"

While Toushiro grabbed the poorly handled cushion, Momo got up and ran behind the couch, her face bright red and her skirt messy. As soon as she noticed Toushiro standing up, she shrieked and shifted away.

She looked around, choosing where to go, but suddenly stopped dead in her tracks as she heard a familiar bark.

_Oh no…_

She turned around and gasped as she saw Hyorinmaru run towards her. "No!" she shrieked, running towards his owner as the dog tried to bite the hem of her skirt.

Hyorinmaru barked and jumped, causing the frightened teenager to jump on top of the couch and move towards the end.

"Toushiro, get your dog!"

"Nah, this is too interesting."

Ignoring his unfair response, she grabbed another cushion and threw it at the playful dog. She would pay Jenaline later for the soon-to-be destroyed furniture, but now, her main priority was to get away from the rottweiler.

"Would you stop smiling and get your dog away?"

"He's not going to bite you, stupid. He simply wants to sniff you. It's what he does when he meets people. Let him sniff your hand."

"Sniff my hand? You mean bite my hand!"

Toushiro shook his head disbelievingly and grabbed her wrist, forcing her down onto the floor. But instead of landing on the floor, she leaped and jumped on him.

Toushiro stumbled back but did not fall as he caught her bridal style, and soon an idea popped into his head.

"Here, you hungry, boy?" he asked, bending down and stretching his arms out so Hyorinmaru could sniff (bite, in Momo's case) the frightened girl.

"Toushiro, stop!"

Momo shrieked as Hyorinmaru's wet tongue licked her hand and then her face. She closed her eyes tightly and wrapped her arms around Toushiro's neck, wriggling her legs up and down simultaneously. She shifted herself closer to his body, burying her head on his chest as she felt Hyorinmaru nip her.

"Down boy!" came Jenaline to the rescue, putting on an apron and grabbing Hyorinmaru by its collar.

The motherly-figure looked at Momo, who was still in his arms, and asked, "Momo, did he bite you?"

"N-No…"

"Good. And oh gosh, what a mess! Toushiro, don't tell me you let the dog play on the couch. You know better."

Before he could've denied the accusation, Momo turned her head and frowned. "That was me, not the dog, trying to run away. I'm sorry. I'll fix everything up."

"Thank you, Momo; but don't be sorry, Hyorinmaru should be out in the backyard anyway. C'mon, boy."

The dog obeyed and followed Jenaline outside.

Once it was gone, Momo shifted away from Toushiro and led herself down, fixing her clothes and hair. Then, she started fixing the couch and picking up the tossed cushions from the floor.  
Tired from their childish game, Toushiro threw himself on the couch and resumed watching his game, cursing as he suddenly found his favorite team losing.

"That's not a nice word to say in front of a lady."

"I see no lady here."

Momo scoffed at him and finally hit him one last time with the cushion. "You're not funny."

"You just lack a sense of humor."

"And you lack a brain."

"I don't need a brain to be smarter than you… And by the way, your zipper's down."

"What-"

"Made you look, stupid. You're wearing a skirt."

Damn, he got her. And good.

"That wasn't funny." she said and headed upstairs, her face flushing and her heart pounding faster. Oh gosh, she had to tell all of this to Johnny….

"Your skirt's ripped from the back. I can see your white panties."

"Liar. My skirt's not ripped and I'm wearing shorts under!" _And I'm not wearing white underwear, stupid_. She added mentally.

Toushiro smirked and looked back at the TV screen, accepting his defeat…for now.

* * *

The following day, at school, Momo had told Johnny everything; and obviously, Johnny was happy and giggling like a spoiled little girl. She had explained to him how the fight started to where he tried to trick her by saying that her skirt had been ripped open.

Johnny, being Johnny of course, wanted to celebrate by going out for pizza after school. Momo agreed to the offer but not without telling Jenaline first.

Throughout the entire day, Momo's thoughts had drifted from school work to Toushiro. What would it feel like to become his girlfriend?

_Slow your thoughts there, girl. Just because you two had a little fun game doesn't mean he's head-over-heels for you._ Her mother's thoughts had projected in her mind. She remembered her mother telling her this over and over, not to mistake human action for affection.

As soon as the bell rang and Momo called Jenaline to notify her, Johnny and her headed out the building but not for long.

Standing a good six to seven feet away from them were the same photographers that had been around Jenaline's home: cameras, pencil, and notepad ready in hands. But this time, they were interviewing random students, most who didn't even know Momo.

"Hey, there she is!" one reporter said, and suddenly, the whole school was staring at her.

"Momo Hinamori, are you responsible for the death of Asia Hinamori and Lobert Thang?"

* * *

**I'm finished! Thanks for reading & I decided to dedicate this chapter to Constance McMillen. Constance McMillen (a lesbian) was going to her [senior] prom with her girlfriend, but unfortunately, the school _and _state of Mississippi (in the United States) became pissy about it and decided to cancel prom for _everybody_. Obviously, her classmates were angry at her. In my opinion, that's stupid! Why would you cancel prom for the WHOLE senior class just because someone wanted to take his boyfriend or her girlfriend? Is being gay _that _big of deal now? Thankfully my school doesn't have that stupid rule and everybody can go with whomever they want to prom.**

**But on the bright side, Constance was then invited to other schools' proms! Lucky her being invited to proms from other schools....and she got a scholarship too! Obviously, the U.S. is still dealing with discrimination and ignorance, so it'll take _time_ for everybody to be equal. And I thought the U.S. was a country for equality....**

**Google Constance McMillen's story for more details. I just gave you guys a quickie...**

**Anyway, those pesky reporters have found out where Momo goes to school and they're interviewing other students! How would you feel if some reporter when up to you and asked you if it was true that the new kid at school was a prostitute and a murderer? Crazy, eh?**

**Bleach has captured my interest again cuz Ichimaru appeared (for the manga) again and he's going BANKAI! I've always been curious about Gin's bankai... it's about time! xD**

**REVIEW!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5! Thanks to ALL of you for reading and reviewing! I was thinking of updating during my Spring Break, but I got lazy and started getting so much into reading books that I didn't have time. I hate it when time flies by...unless it's a very boring day. Anyway, I am trying to update as fast as I can, but as the school year is wrapping up (April's almost gone and May's around the corner...then June! Time does fly by...), more state tests are thrown at me. Oh well...it's life. Anyway, enjoy & tell me what you think!**

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"What?"

"Are you or are you not responsible for the deaths of Asia Hinamori and Lobert Thang?"

Momo wanted to run away and hide, but could not find the strength to do so. The reporters shifted closer to her, inquiring her questions that she did not want to think about. She felt the students' curious and interested eyes on her, talking about her.

Damn, the new kid is a whore?

How old is she?

She murdered her mom and her mom's boyfriend?

Why isn't she in juvenile?

"Yo whore, the reporter's asking you a question!"

Flinching, she looked at the one who had said that. He gave her a questioning look, waiting for whatever response she had. All of them were waiting for her response, but she had none. What is she supposed to say?

Her vision became blurry with tears. She wanted to say something back, but her voice was caught in her throat by some invisible force. Finally, a single tear rolled down her eye and towards the edge of her mouth, the salty taste causing her to step back.

"Look, the slut's crying!"

She felt a pair of hands on her shoulders, pulling her back inside the school building as the school's principal and faculty arrived.

"What is the meaning of this?"

"Ma'am, is it true that Momo Hinamori murdered Asia Hinamori and her client?"

For a second, the principal gave the reporter a confounding expression until realization hit her and made her notice that they were all inquiring about the girl Janeline was parenting.

"I want all of you to get out and never come back! Remember this, if _any_ reporter comes back to this school, all of you will be sent to court!"

The reporters put their cameras down and started walking away. The principal then gazed at her alumni, all of them knowing that she didn't want any trouble concerning Momo and her personal life.

-

Johnny embraced Momo, looking through the glass window to see if any of the pesky reporters were outside, waiting for her to come out of the chemistry room and snap a picture of her. But he saw no one. Good.

Momo wiped the tears away from her eyes, not wanting to cry in front of Johnny and just in case the reporters or other students were looking for her. She didn't want to be seen crying.

"Momo, don't cry. You're going to make _me_ cry." Johnny said, pouting his lips and taking out a napkin to wipe her tears away.

She tried to tell him that she was all right, but her voice and lie caught by her throat and more unwanted tears poured down from her eyes.

On the bright side, at least it was Johnny and not Toushiro who was soothing her. In addition, she couldn't see the white-haired teen as the "soothing" type.

They sat down on the stool and Momo placed her head on the table, pretending that everything was a nightmare and soon her mother would wake her up and help her get ready for school.

The sound of a doorknob turning alarmed her, causing her to flinch on her seat and stare at the door with wide eyes.

Expecting camera flashes and questions, she got up and ran to the back of the room, but halted as soon as Toushiro entered.

"Don't worry, they're gone. Jenaline's here to take you home."

Relief poured through her as she rubbed her forehead and pushed her bangs back, her eyes still watery.

She followed him towards the door but halted. Sensing her unsureness, Toushiro turned and grabbed her wrist. "C'mon, they're not outside."

She allowed him to drag out the hall and down the staircase to where Jenaline was waiting with Johnny following right behind. Momo felt safe all of the sudden.

Once they reached the first floor, Jenaline appeared with a worried expression. "Oh darling, are you all right?"

Cupping Momo's cheeks, Jenaline scrutinized her from top to bottom; but both of them knew that the real damage was not done physically but emotionally.

"I'm fine."

_I'm not…_

Jenaline's features softened. "I'm sorry this happened to you."

The teen wanted to reassure her and tell her not to worry about it, that it wasn't her fault, but again she lost her voice.

Two police officers, the school principal, and some other teachers that Momo didn't know were present as well.

"They just want to make sure that you're all right as well. Do you want to go to the hospital?"

"I'm fine. I don't need the hospital or anything else. I just want to go home."

_To my mother… _

Jenaline sighed and nodded. "All right. Let's go, but you're not coming to school tomorrow. I want you home tomorrow."

_She's afraid something's going to happen to me…_

Momo gave a simple nod and stared at the officers as they left. Then, feeling more relaxed, the principal sauntered over to her and placed her hand on her shoulder.

"Are you feeling all right, Ms. Hinamori?"

_Ms. Hinamori… that's what people who didn't know about my mom's reputation used to call her._

Again, another nod: afraid that if she spoke, her tears would come out and she wouldn't be able to restrain them.

But could they see, through her crystal eyes, the anguish she was feeling?

"Let's go." Jenaline finally said, noticing the tired expression Momo had.

As they walked outside, the teen noticed that the two officers weren't gone at all, but instead were looking around the school area to see if any of the reporters (or other unwanted people) were still around. Fortunately, there wasn't a trace of any.

Momo sat in between Jenaline and Johnny (whom was given a ride home) as Toushiro drove them home.

Leaning her head back on the seat, she closed her eyes and prayed for better news.

But unfortunately, _that_ did not happen. The hospital had finally sent her the letter regarding her mother's death and whether she wanted her mother to become cremated or not.

_Mommies can't die…their little girls need them…_

That's what she had told herself when she was six or seven every time her mother wouldn't come home 'till five or six o'clock in the morning.

_I'm sorry baby, but I was with three clients last night and couldn't make it home in time…._ By age ten, she had found out that those "clients" were other horny people whom paid her mother for giving them the best sex they ever had.

But she still loved her to death.

She was finally at home and staring at the letter in front of her.

_Cremate my mother…. Cremate my mother….. Cremate my mother?_

Momo couldn't imagine her mother being burned into ashes. She just couldn't…

_Maybe a nice nap will help…_

* * *

Toushiro had never seen so many people worked up over something that's not even their business before. But, that's how the world was. Everyone suddenly knew about everything.

Yet, what annoyed him the most was the fact that everybody came for him for answers.

_Is that girl really a ho?_

_Did she really kill her mother?_

_Doe she bring men home every night behind your foster mom's back?_

_Does she give you blow jobs every night?_

_Does she look good naked? Cuz she has a nice ass. Small tits, but nice ass._

And there were more…

Toushiro couldn't believe the questions people were asking him, but then again, it was high school. Home to the horny teenagers of the world.

Even his friends had asked some perverted questions, and it angered him.

Tying his shoe laces as the gym period was finally over, Toushiro heard the boys' conversation about his housemate. They had suggested that she wasn't virgin and that she would be _great_ for them to enjoy for a night or two…

And for once, Toushiro felt disgusted at them. Before, when they would talk about girls and sex, he wouldn't care or sometimes commented back on how he would like his sex life to be….

But now, he couldn't stand it. He knew Momo and what was shameful was the fact that the rumors about her would ruin her teenage years even more.

"Yo Snowman, is she good?"

"What?"

"Does she taste good?"

Narrowing his green-blue eyes, he grabbed his bag and left. For once, his own friends made him sick.

* * *

"When are you planning your mother's funeral?"

"I was thinking about this Saturday…but I don't want a funeral…actually, my mom never wanted a funeral. She dislikes them. I just want to give her a quick and private burial."

Jenaline sliced the vegetables into small pieces before rinsing them under the faucet.

"Your mom has spoken to you about her own death?"

Momo nodded, recalling the peculiar type of conversations they had before. Her mom had told her about not wanting anything "big" for her funeral. She just wanted to get cremated and simply buried. Asia Hinamori loathed the idea of having her ashes living inside a jar for years.

"Did she suffer from depression?"

Another nod. "My mom felt bad for not being the best mother in the world. She dreamt about being a secretary, working for a hot boss, and being there for me. Even though she enjoyed being….promiscuous…she hated it at the same time. My mom was afraid that I would end up the same way…."

"Just because your mother was a prostitute doesn't mean she was a horrible mother. There are women out there who're doctors and lawyers that are terrible mothers. If your mother loved you, fed you, took care of you, and out a roof above your head, then she was  
a good mother."

"She was a good mother….but other people made her seem like a terrible one."

"Ahh, the _lovely_ words of others… To me, that is one of the leading factors of depression. Did your mom ever try to commit suicide?"

Momo made circles on the table as she recalled the numerous times her mother had taken many over-the-counter prescription drugs; drugs that were for menstrual cramps, depression, anxiety, and colds.

"She tried, some nights when I wasn't aware of it, but stopped after I hid everything from the medicine cabinet and poke to her. I told her that if suicide worked, then I would be lon-"

A profound curse traveled through the house as the front door closed with a loud thud!

Momo gave Jenaline a questioning look before walking into the living room and finding an angry Toushiro stomping up the steps to his room. She has never seen his face red in anger before, and it scared her. What was wrong with him?

Jenaline grabbed his arm and turned him around, cupping his face with her hands. "Calm down. You know that this is hazardous to your health!"

Closing his eyes and stepping away from her, he turned around and run upstairs, his face still flaming red. Jenaline gave an apologetic look to Momo before following him upstairs.

-

Clutching the diary, Momo wondered what had gone wrong with Toushiro and why his anger was dangerous when coming to his health. Well, she obviously knows that anger isn't a great emotion for someone, but her nosy self wants to know how anger can affect Toushiro.

They've both been talking for the past hour and Momo was dying to know what were they discussing about. If her mother was still alive, she would encourage her to quietly stand behind the door and listen.

But that was wrong…

_What if they're talking about you?_

How could that be? But then again, just like many people quoted, anything is possible.

Swiftly, she walked out of her bedroom and towards Toushiro's. Jenaline's sweet voice was heard first, continued by Toushiro's angered one.

Halting a few inches from the door, she held her diary tighter and listened carefully to what they were conversing.

_"They wouldn't shut the hell up about her, and now they think that she's whoring around with me!"_

_"Toushiro, they know nothing. Please don't let that get to you."_

_"How can I not when Sayuri thinks that we're going out."_

_"…But did you tell her that you weren't?"_

_"She wants to believe me, but can't when everyone thinks Momo and I have a sexual relationship and they know that we live under the same roof. I feel nothing for her and my relationship with Sayuri is going down the drain. I was thinking of inviting her to dinner…but I know that that would be a disaster."_

_"Invite the girl to dinner so she'll see for herself that you and Momo are just my foster children and that's it."_

_"And you think she'll believe it?"_

_"I'm sure she will. You can introduce her to Momo and-"_

A sarcastic snort was heard from Toushiro's throat. _"You think Sayuri will want to meet a whore's daughter?"_

_"Toushiro, what did I tell you before? I don't want you judging her just because of what her mother did! Please give the girl a break. She suffered more than you ever did!"_

The room went silent, and quietly, Momo walked back to her room.

A whore's daughter…

Why had she thought that he would never refer to her as that whore's daughter? Why had she thought that he would respect her? He was just like everybody else, just like how she_ is_ a whore's daughter.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I have never felt so betrayed before in my life, and it sucks. I had thought that Toushiro was going to be an exception, but I was wrong. He's just like them, but what's worse is that I have a crush on him. I feel so stupid and I hate him so much. What am I going to do?_

_- M.H._

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**Chapter finished! I know that much didn't occur and it was short, but this is like a "backbone" to what's going to happen next chapter...I just hope I get to update the next chapter asap! Anyway, I have an obsession of wanting to ride a motorcycle. I'm such a weirdo. Anyway, I read the latest Bleach episode and I'm a lil' confused w/ the whole Hyogoku (I know I spelled that thing wrong). Aizen's now like 1000000x stronger and Gin's bankai doesn't impress me _that _much. Honestly, I thought it would be better...but meeeh... it's all right I guess. Bright side: Matsumoto woke up! **

**Anyway...**

**REVIEW!  
**


	6. Chapter 6

**Holy Jesus...it's been forever! Anyway...school's ALMOST DONE! =) Just 2 and a half more weeks xD Anyway, for those who're PMing me, please give me a bit more time to PM you guys back. My modem broke and it took the company 4 days to give me a new one =.= Anyway, sorry for the delay! Anyway, I have to tell u guys A LOT of things about this world. I talk as if I know you guys even tho I really don't know you guys...except for 2 of you. One of you I already saw in person ;D Enjoy & review!**

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_Dear Diary:_

_I have decided to ignore him completely and start a new life. I spoke with Johnny and told him what Toushiro had described me as a few nights ago - a whore's daughter. He was pissed off (of course) and wanted to speak with him, but I stopped him. I don't want more complications between Toushiro and me. Since he only sees me as a whore's daughter, then I guess I'll stop seeing him as a friend but an ass (Johnny has gotten me using some naughty words). Toushiro can call me a whore's daughter all he wants; I won't let his words hurt me anymore._

_- M. H._

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_

The burial had been short. The only ones present had been her, Jenaline, Johnny, and Toushiro. Her mother had been wearing a beautiful white dress that Momo had bought a day before the burial, along with her favorite jewelry and a simple hair bun that Asia sometimes wore when wanting to look _professional_.

Momo had kissed her mother twice and even hugged her, uncaring that the woman inside the coffin was dead. Johnny had wished her peace in the afterlife and promised her that he would take good care of her daughter.

Jenaline had wished her happiness in the other side as well before the beautiful coffin was laid in the ground.

Momo had then planted a beautiful mix of roses, lilies, orchids, hibiscuses, and lantanas: flowers that her mother always bought for decoration.

And a few minutes later, Momo walked alongside with Johnny, not glancing over to Toushiro at all.

"My father's an archaeologist and my mother's a housewife. They are great parents and taught me much love." Sayuri proudly said, giving Jenaline a sincere smile.

Johnny rolled his eyes, giving Momo an I-don't-believe-that-shit expression. Momo hid her amusement as she took a sip of her apple juice. Thank goodness she had invited Johnny over for dinner as well: lessening the tension there was between her, Toushiro, and Sayuri.

"Oh, that's great." Jenaline responded, failing on concealing how uninterested she was in Sayuri's too-perfect life. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to bring Hyorinmaru's food. He must be hungry."

As Jenaline grabbed two Pedigree cans of dog food, a Spring bottle of water and left, Sayuri turned her head and smiled at Toushiro, who returned it.

"So, Johnny," she then said, bringing his attention towards her, "I heard that you're gay."

Johnny nodded proudly, showing her the rainbow-colored bracelet he wore. "I am and proud to be!"

"Oh, that's nice…. But aren't you afraid of your friends judging you?"

"First of all, sweetie, people who judge are not friends. Learn the true meaning of friendship. And second, I don't care about what they say about me… At least they do not talk about how I open my legs to most guys in that dirty high school."

Momo's eyes, widened, quickly made contact with Toushiro, who dropped his fork and glared at Johnny.

"Are you suggesting that I'm a whore?" Sayuri asked, her bright eyes widening.

Johnny looked shocked. "And when did I say something horrid like that?"

"Hmph, you didn't…. But don't confuse me with other individuals please." Sayuri responded, glancing at Momo and smiling.

Momo frowned as she gripped her utensil tightly, but didn't have the guts to say anything back.

"Sayuri," Toushiro got her attention, not liking where the conversation was heading. But before the girl even looked at him, Johnny put his glass down forcibly.

"Now, hell no, you better not be thinking what I'm thinking."

"And that would be?"

"Take that smirk off your face, you flat-chested bimbo. You don't know a thing about Momo here, so shut that cum-sucking mouth of yours, all right?"

They all stayed shut; Sayuri blushing, Momo hiding her smile, and Toushiro glancing at all of them. Jenaline finally arrived, lessening the tension between the four teens, and they all resumed eating.

* * *

"Did he tell you anything after I left?"

"No, but he kept on staring at me last night when I took out the trash."

"How was he looking at you?"

"Like…if he wanted to talk to me but didn't want to approach me. I think he hates me….and I don't like that."

Johnny set his books aside while shaking his head. The clock's hand moved up, signaling that it was already six-thirty. Library closed at eight.

"He doesn't hate you….I'm sure of it."

But Momo still looked doubtful. "Maybe I should just forget about him…It's not use since he probably doesn't like me that way and he likes Sayuri. I should start thinking about what I want in the future…a-and now that my mom's gone…I really want to look for him."

Johnny's eyebrows drew together. "Him? Who him?"

"My dad. I want to meet him…hopefully he's not too far away or worse, dead."

Her friend rubbed his forehead. "But how are you going to look for him? You don't even know how he looks like….and you don't even know his name. Where are you going to look first?"

"The place where my mom and dad first met."

"The strip club your mom worked at?"

A nod.

"Sweetie, I'm not sure about that idea. I mean, I don't want to seem as if I don't want you to search for your father, I want you to, but people lately haven't shut their mouths up about you. Do you know how worse it'll get once people see you going into some strip club? Especially the one where your mom worked at?"

Momo knew that the rumors were going to get worse. Students already spoke about her in front of her face, wondering how many times she has opened her legs, if she has ever gotten pregnant and had an abortion, if she has had a threesome before, if she has some type of STD, and the list went on…

It irritated her to see how people can make up random hurtful things about her without even taking ten seconds of their lives to actually get to know her.

"I can't let their opinions stop me from looking for my father. I feel lonelier now that my mother's gone….And I want to meet him. I need to know who my father is. Hopefully, my life will become better with him in it."

_Or it can become worse…_

But how can it become worse? Her father can hate her for being a bastard child. He probably married and started a family of his own right after she was born and won't want her mixed with his new family. He could be dead…

"OK, I really hate that look you're giving me, Momo."

"What look? I was just thinking to myself. You think he would hate me?"

"Why would he hate you when he doesn't even know that a part of him exists?"

"Fine. How do you think he would react if he all of the sudden found out that he has a daughter somewhere in this world."

"Shocked, confused, surprised…"

"Happy? Sad?"

"That, I don't know. There are many type of fathers in this world. There are the assholes, lead by my father, and there are the kind ones, who're hard to find but fortunately exist in this nasty world." Upon seeing her disappointed face, he added, "But you shouldn't worry about that now. I mean, you don't even know him! You should start finding out more info about him."

Momo nodded, putting her books back in her tote bag. "I am, starting tonight. I'm going to look for my mom's friend's phone numbers. Hopefully, they know at least how my father looks like…"

"And if they know nothing?"

Momo shrugged, biting her lips. "Then I don't know what else to do…"

* * *

It was late, around 11:30, and Momo was the only one awake. Jenaline, who had been very tired, was sleeping soundlessly in her room while Toushiro had been locked inside his room since dinner.

With a phonebook on her lap, a notepad on her right, and her mother's contact list in her hands, Momo searched every phone number that was on the list. She recognized most of the names there; they were her mom's coworkers. Some of them had "retired" from their jobs, working now as mistresses for famous rich (some married) men.

Momo hoped that some, at least one, of her mother's closest friends knew her father.

Staring at the list of ten, she decided that it was late and needed a lot of rest before calling everyone.

She rarely spoke to her mother's friends, therefore asking them about her father wasn't going to be simple-  
"Why are you still up?"

"Huh?"

Toushiro stood by banister, wearing nothing but boxers. If only Johnny was here to stare at his lean muscles….

"I was doing something."

"What?"

What did _he_ care? According to him, she's a whore's daughter. Why should he care what she did?

"Something important." she only replied, putting away the phonebook and putting everything else inside her tote bag.

"It's so important that I can't know?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"Because whatever you're planning better not hurt Jenaline in any way."

"Hurt Jenaline? Or you mean, affect your reputation?"

"What?"

Shaking, Momo grabbed her bag and walked towards him. "I know that you worry about losing Sayuri and having people hate you just because you have to live under the same roof with a whore's daughter." Her voice became hoarse, but her stare did not falter. For once, she felt good about herself.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Oh, you _know_ what I'm talking about. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm tired and would like to get some rest."

Momo walked up the steps, her body trembling and her cheeks warming up. Finally, she stood up for herself. Oh, where was Johnny to congratulate her?

But where had that confidence come from? How'd she get the guts to talk back to him like that? From the people who have stepped on her and ridiculed her. From finally wanting to do something with her life. To find the man who had helped her mother conceive her.

Stepping inside her cold room and shutting the door with her foot, she dropped to the floor and sobbed.

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**Done! I have almost half of chapter 7 finished, so I'll try to finish it soon. hehehe. Now for the Ruby News...**

**1) The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is making me go NUTS! (If you haven't heard about that, go to Yahoo or MSN news). I don't care whether you believe in global warming or not; I don't care if you LOVE the environment or don't give sh!t about it, but you SHOULD CARE about what's going on in the gulf of mexico! That oil spill (which is A LOT OF OIL) is destroying/killing the organisms AND the beaches by the Florida coast is getting pretty dirty. Who wants to swim in water that's dirtied by oil? Anyway, oil is still leaking and people don't know how to solve the problem =( Why can't car companies just STOP w/ the whole oil stuff and make electrical cars? We wouldn't have to pay for gas... And wars wouldn't start at all. Yes, countries fight and kill other people for oil. **

**2) Two year old boy smoking! I think this was in Indonesia...I'm not too sure...Correct me if I'm wrong, but I SAW THE VIDEO of a TWO-YEAR-OLD BOY smoking cigarette like if he was an adult! And he smokes PACKS a day and his dad thinks it's OK. 0_0 I've seen ten-year-olds smoking, but two years old! That kid doesn't even know the difference between a boy and a girl! 0_0 Anyway, hopefully someone over there stops that kid before he kills himself. It's his parents fault for being careless. Sad world. Two-year-old boy smoking...**

**Um...that's it I guess? **

**REVIEW!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7! Thank you for reading and reviewing the previous chapter! Anyway, last chapter, you guys read that Momo wants to search for her father. Some of you liked that idea while a few of you kind of didn't. I really don't care; you guys have the right to have opinions, but I want to know more about what you think once you finish reading this chapter; which becomes more in depth with the search. Enjoy & review!**

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_Dear Diary,_

_This is harder than I thought. With Johnny's help. I managed to call seven people in about two hours. Three of them had no idea who I was, so asking them about my father was useless. Two of them had remembered me, asking me how I've been doing lately, but had not the slightest idea who my father was. The other two gave me some information about my father. One told me, heard from my own mother's mouth, that my father was the co-founder of some prospered company; while the other lady told me that his last name was Pierczar. So, my father's rich and has a last name of Pierczar. What's even better is that my mother had spoken about my father a lot to her friends; and now, they're going to tell me everything they know about him. _

_- M.H._

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Momo rechecked her test for the sixth time, knowing one-hundred percent that her answers were correct. Ten minutes remained for the rest of the class to complete their exams; and in the meantime, Momo took out the list of phone numbers and what she had written down so far about her father.

**Name: Luke Pierczar**  
**Occupation: CEO, co-founder of some engineering company  
****Nationality/Ethnic group: mother is Italian, father is Russian.**

Momo had been surprised to know that she had Italian and Russian blood inside her body. It made her feel unique.

Now, there were only two more people to contact and ask them about her mother. Hopefully, they knew more about him. It would make her research easier.

"Those who're finished with the tests, please put them on my desk and you may leave."

Momo, along with a five other students, stood and placed her exam on the desk. There was only one hour left of school and she couldn't wait to get home and continue her calls. She felt as if she was a millimeter away from discovering who her father truly was.

She waited by the school's library for Johnny, ignoring some of the looks she was receiving from other students.

Her popularity was something she hated to think about. The garbage can was more popular than her. Sometimes, boys would leave letters taped to her locker, asking her when was the best time for her to sate them. If it weren't letters from horny boys, then it was from angry girlfriends. Some girls thought that she was opening her legs to their boyfriends, which was obviously not true, and they had admonished her to close her legs or have them chopped off.

Momo knew that if she showed Amy those letters, the officer would track down (since the letters are anonymous) who ever wrote them and take them to court.

"Hey, I see you got out of class early." Johnny said, walking up to her.

"Test was easy. I finished early, so the teacher let me out earlier than usual. I really can't wait to get home and continue that list. I feel as if I'm one step away from actually meeting my father."

"You practically are! You…"

Johnny's voice died out as he saw a football player stand behind his friend, lean over her shoulder, and whisper something to her ear. By the look on Momo's face, Johnny knew that the boy didn't recite her a line from the bible.

"So, what ya' say?"

The boy stood slightly over six-feet with dark blond hair and sparkly green eyes.

"Um.., I don't do things like that." Momo replied, moving away from the boy and towards Johnny.

"Really? I heard that ya' did…and that ya' are very good at it."

"I don't do such things that you want me to do."

"Aw, c'mon."

"She said that she doesn't whore around like you people want her to… So back off."

"And who're ya' to get into our conversation, fag?"

Johnny stayed quiet, not knowing _how _to respond to that. He loathed that word; it was a word that caused him to put his head down and hate himself for who he was.

"D-Don't talk to him like that."

"Or what? What's he gonna do to me?"

Pause.

"Nothing? Exactly, ya' whore!"

Momo grabbed Johnny's hand and walked away, knowing that whatever she said wasn't going to go through the boy's head and make him stop bullying them.

The boy continued to yell phrases at them, but both she and Johnny paid no heed to him; there were more important things to attend.

"When are you going to…the club to speak with the lady?"

"Tonight."

"Tonight? Won't Jenaline-"

"Jenaline's going out tonight with a group of friends. I can sneak out of the house really quick, take the bus, and go to the club."

"What about Toushiro?"

Momo stopped, mentally slapping her forehead for not thinking about him.

"Hopefully…he-he'll be too wrapped up with his ignorance to notice me gone."

"You really think so?"

"I hope so."

"I wish I could go with you, but my mom-"

"Don't worry about it. I'll tell you everything that happens."

"You better! I'm just as nosy as these people around here…"

* * *

Wearing skinny jeans, black Converse sneakers, and a navy blue sweater, Momo looked both ways, making sure he was still inside his room. She made sure a second time that her cell phone (that used to be her mother's), money, keys, and the contact list was there. It was six o'clock, and the next bus would leave at six fifteen, leaving her about ten minutes to quickly get to the bus stop.

Swiftly, she walked out of her room and down the staircase, skipping steps. She already had everything planned once she arrived at the club. She would enter from the back door (same door she used whenever she wanted to visit her mother), run up the stair case to where the office was, and speak with her mom's boss. Momo even calculated the time she had to spend with the woman: approximately thirty minutes. She didn't want Jenaline coming back and not finding her home.

"Where are you going?"

A loud gasp escaped her lips as Momo twirled around and saw Toushiro standing two feet away from her. His hair and clothes looked slightly messy, as if he had been taking a nap.

"To the store."

"How old do you think I am to actually believe that?"

"I don't care if you believe me or not. I'm going out."

Momo opened the door, but Toushiro grabbed her elbow and kicked the door closed.

"Jenaline's not here and you know how she'll react once she sees that you're gone."

"I'll be back before she arrives."

"She can come any minute!"

"She left fifteen minutes ago! There's no way she can be back any minute. Now let me go before I miss the bus."

Toushiro grunted as he grabbed her hand and pulled her inside again. "At least tell me where you're going….and I'll take you there."

Momo cocked an eyebrow. "You're joking…"

"Do you see me laughing? I'm serious. Tell me where you're going and I'll take you there. This way, you won't get in trouble with Jenaline."

"I don't trust you enough to tell you."

"I promise I won't tell anybody…including Jenaline. I'll tell her we went somewhere else. She'll believe me."

Momo took out her cellphone and stared at the time. It was six-ten. Her bus would be arriving in five minutes and the bus stop was four blocks away. There was no way she was going to make it in time. Looking back up at Toushiro, Momo debated whether he should take her or not. She'd done too much research to postpone this visit for another day, and besides, she couldn't wait another twenty-four hours without speaking with someone who knew her mother. In addition, she was four minutes away from missing the bus and ten minutes away from the bus stop.

She had no other choice.

"F-Fine…but please don't tell anybody else, especially Jenaline. She'll be angry with me."

"I won't tell her, I promise. But where are you going?"

"I'm going to the strip club where my mom worked at."

Toushiro's eyebrows furrowed. "Why?"

"…Because I need to know more information about my father and my mom's co-workers know who he is. I want to know who my father is."

Toushiro thought about everything for a second, and then replied with a sigh. "OK..I'll take you there. But, we'll have to hurry. And if Jenaline asks where we've been, we'll say that we were at a school play. The drama club is actually showing a play today, so she'll believe our lie."

Momo smiled at how quickly Toushiro organized a lie. "Thank you."

They arrived at the club in twenty minutes, and Toushiro was surprised to see many men and women entering. What shocked him the most was the fact that he knew some of those people entering…one of the school janitors and his coach's younger brother. The hypocrisy was actually showing…

Momo led Toushiro through the back door, their eardrums pounding from the loud music downstairs. As they walked up the steps, Toushiro noticed the half naked women putting on their make-up.

"This is what goes on everyday?"

"Yup. This was what my mom had to go through everyday."

Toushirou couldn't take his eyes off the women stripping in front of him, running back and forth, getting ready for their next customer. Bras, thongs, stiletto heels, mini skirts, and other accessories were thrown around from one girl to another. Toushiro began to sweat, never seeing so many naked women at once in his life time.

"Are you OK? You're turning red….and sweating."

Toushiro ran a hand through his spiky hair, closing his eyes and grabbing her hand. Momo blushed as she looked at their hands linked together. She looked at him and saw the look he was giving her.

"What?"

"You're used to seeing all of this, aren't you?"

"Or course. My mom worked here and every week I would come whenever I didn't want to stay home alone."

"How can you not get uncomfortable with all of this?"

"Eventually I got used to it. It's no big deal for me now. Now c'mon. We have to get out of the way and give these ladies room to change."

Toushiro was astounded at how these women were happy with what they were doing. Momo lead him down the hall, amused at how his reddened face stood out.

Some of the ladies took quick notice of them, most of them recognizing and greeting her. A few touched Toushiro's hair and complimented on his handsomeness.

Momo halted in front of a large door. Her body trembled, almost forgetting why she was there in the first place.

"Aren't you going to knock?"

Momo shot an irritated look at him before knocking. The lady inside took a few minutes before opening the door and recognizing the girl standing in front of her.

"Momo? Momo _Hinamori_?"

The woman, Jinnette Lynn, stood in front of Momo and cupped her cheeks. "My goodness, girl, I haven't seen you in months! You've grown so much! And who's the cutie over here? Your boyfriend?"

Toushiro didn't utter a word as he stood against the wall with his hands buried deep inside his pockets and his expression indifferent.

"No, he's my housemate."

"Oh! I see, but gosh you guys would make such a cute couple… Anyway, what are you doing here? I remembered you would sneak through the back door everyday just to see your mother."

Momo smiled at the painful memories. "I…um…wanted to talk to you about something…important."

"Oh, I see… Come in then, both of you."

The teens followed the woman inside, staring at her wide pinkish office. There were portraits of naked people on her wall, and another frame of her, nude as well. Toushiro stood between two of the frames (her whole wall was covered in frames) and stared out the window, watching as men and women entered the club while paying close attention to what Momo and the woman were going to speak about.

"So, how've you been? What do you want to speak about?"

Momo scratched her head, thinking of the words in order to say the sentence correctly.

"Well….um…you know…since my mom's…gone and…I need somebody…I wanted-want to know who my father is. I spoke with some of my mom's friends and they told me light details about him…name, his job… But I want to know more and be able to look for him. I really want, well hope, that he becomes a part of my life."

Jinnette smiled, touched by the girl's words. "I'm really glad that you decided on searching for him. You deserve to know who he is. And to make your search a little easier, I've met your father a couple of times."

Momo's jaw dropped but she quickly composed herself. "Wh-What?"

"You heard me correctly; I've met your father a few times before. Him and your mother actually had a relationship going on, but only for like five days….if you can call that a relationship of course. Things weren't going well with them, so they decided to break off."

"Wait, my mom told me that it was a one-night stand thing…"

Jinnette laughed. "She only told you part of the story. The whole story is that, they met on a one-night-stand, but he gave her his number and they saw each other for a few days. Unfortunately, it wasn't true love at first sight. They didn't hate each other, and still don't. But they haven't seen each other for about sixteen, maybe seventeen years. So…."

"So he really doesn't know that I exist…"

Jinnette nodded. "Asia loves you very much, and she was afraid that you were going to hate her for not telling you who your father was. On top of that, she was scared that Luke was going to take you away."

"Would he have…taken me away from her if he'd found out?"

"Honestly, I doubt he would have. He and your mother were very young and neither of them wanted to start a family. But that doesn't mean that you should give up your search on him. He's not going to reject you. Luke's not that type of ma-er, father."

"Where is my father now?"

"Lucky you, he's still in the country. His company hasn't moved or anything. Unfortunately, he's hours away."

"Hours? Where is this company and what's it called?"

"Chemical and Mechanical Engineering Corps. It's a really big company but it's set in different countries. Your father's one of the executive officers, and it's going to be hard communicating with him, but I'm sure you'll get in contact with him one day. Momo, are you all right?"

The teen stared at her lap, concealing her watery eyes. "I'm fine…Just wondering what he would think of me…"

"I'm sure he'll be glad to know that he has a daughter somewhere."

"Do you think he's married now?"

Jinnette shrugged. "That I cannot answer. I really don't know. You can find the phone number for the company in a phonebook. From there, ask whoever picks up the phone to get you in contact with him. Won't be easy, though. Oh, and before I forget, the company's an hour after the DuBois Bridge! It's probably the biggest building in that area. That's all I know."

"Thanks for the information, and I will try to get in contact with him somehow."

"Good for you! Good luck with everything."

Momo thanked the woman and turned to Toushiro. He still stood there with his stoic face, hands inside pockets.

Toushiro looked at her and walked towards the door. They passed by the strippers (some whom saying goodbye to Momo sadly) and outside the club. The smell of expensive perfume and sex still hung under their noses as they reached the car. Momo was surprised to see how dark it got and immediately worried whether Jenaline found out that they weren't home.

"Jenaline called me ten minutes ago. I sent her a text message saying that we were in a school play and that I would then take you out to eat."

"What did she say?"

"She only knows how to read the messages, not text back. She's not worried though since you're with me."

He turned and looked at her, leaning against the car.

"Thank you for bringing me here. You just made my trip a whole lot easier."

"No problem."

The awkward silence grew tenser as he watched her with those crystal green-blue eyes. She felt as if he was watching her naked, and quickly she averted her eyes to the parked cars in front of the club. So many vehicles….so many customers…

And he was standing in front of her. She glanced up at him and saw his gaze drop on her lips. She could feel his tense posture as if debating whether to kiss her or not. As he stared at her slightly parted lips, she stared at his eyes, noticing how slowly his face was getting closer and closer to hers…

Momo's body trembled as his warm lips met hers. She took a step back but he placed his hand on her back and pressed her against him. While his eyes were closed as his lips stroked hers, Momo's eyes were wide opened with surprise, confusion, and fear.

Her first kiss was in front of her mom's one and only workplace…

Toushiro pulled away but continued to hold her like that, saying something underneath his breath as he embraced her. Momo hugged him back and smiled, impatient on getting home and writing in her diary.

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**Yay I'm finished! Oh my gosh I'm literally falling asleep right now & typing... Anyway, I hope you guys liked this chapter. I'm trying to speed up my chapters since school's over in 1 week (this week). I love to read your opinions about this situation & what you would do if you were in Momo's shoes. Anyway, Idiotic Ruby must leave now and take her 8-hour sleep. Someone actually called me an idiot cuz I dislike hunting (you know, killing animals for fun) and think it's wrong. Whoa...I'm an idiot for hating to kill those poor cute little deer and bears! Gosh, Ruby, you really are an idiot! It's a sin to feel that way! You must hunt! You must kill! You must destroy cuz for some I-have-no-freaking-reason, it is important to kill! Guys, we should all kill! You know what's even better? We should all kill each other as well! Wouldn't that be fun! We can shoot each others' brains out! Oh yeah baby! Life is awesome!**

**You guys probably think I'm drunk or something. I'm not. Ruby's just sleepy. **

**REVIEW!  
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	8. Chapter 8

**Ch.8! Thank you guys for reviewing and reading! I know I took long to update...but it's my summer vacation! The time where I can do w/e I want and going to bed at 2 o'clock in the morning! Anyway, here's your ch.8! It's short...but you guys tell me about it. So, therefore, REVIEW!**

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_Dear Diary,_

_Confusion is something I hate; and right now, I'm very confused. After kissing me, Toushiro didn't utter a word to me! The whole trip from the club to the house was awkward. I couldn't help but bite my nails the whole time. I couldn't dare myself to glance at him because I knew that if I did, I would've started hyperventilating and talking nonsense like a moron. I don't know what to do now….I mean, does he like me? Obviously he has to if he kissed me! But what about Sayuri? Gosh I'm so confused!_

_- H.M._

_

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Momo told Johnny everything; from when Toushiro caught her sneaking out of the house to when they both arrived home, silent, as if nothing had ever happened. And _that_ irritated her.  
Sayuri had called earlier this morning, asking - no demanding - Toushiro to pick her up for school because she was too "tired" to walk ten blocks.

Momo knew it was a lie - she just wanted to see Toushiro and try to get him inside her skirt.

Jealousy had pounded inside her ever since….

A new club was created at the school, Drama Club, and Johnny dragged Momo into joining it with him. What better way for them to meet new people than joining the Drama Club?

Mr. JohnDean entered the room, wearing his favorite pink shirt with long khaki trousers, with a notepad and pen in hand. He looked more like a movie director instead of a teacher.

"Wow, I'm glad all of you are interested in this club. I was fearing that I would only find three people here."

Momo glanced around and noticed that there more than fifty in the classroom.

"Anyway, I'm Mr. JohnDean and I'm the moderator for this club. I also teach English, German, and Physics. I love teaching a bit of everything…. Anyway, I'm glad the board of education gave me the OK to _construct_ this club. I have really high hopes for this club, I hope no problem arises with it, and for the remainder of this year, I want to do at least two plays. Next year when we start a new school year, I want to accomplish at least five plays! It's all right if some of you are very shy and don't want to stand in front of others; you can work backstage setting up and making sure everything's running smoothly. Now, I'm going to stop talking…yeah I know I'm very talkative….and let you guys introduce yourselves! Let's start with you!"

Minutes passed by as everyone said their name, age, grade level, hobbies, and what their future expectations were. When it came to Johnny, he told everyone his full name, orientation ("Proud to be gay!" he had exclaimed), his hobby (dancing salsa and designing), and his future expectation: wanting to make a difference for every gay person out there and to set equality everywhere.

Everyone was pleased to have him there, something that didn't happen quite often.

Then, all eyes were on Momo. Sheepishly, she stated her name, age, and her future expectation: finding her father. As for hobby, she ignored that bit, baffled whether writing would be considered a hobby for her. Once she was finished with her statements, everyone had smiled at her, indulging her for once.

As soon as everyone was presented, Mr. JohnDean handed out a syllabus. In it was the list of the three plays he wanted to do: In the Heights, The Glass Menagerie, and The Blue Man Group. Mr. JohnDean explained that In The Heights was going to be the first play they will be working on and auditions will start the following day after school.

Momo glanced at the list and pondered whether she should audition for the role of Vanessa or just stay behind the curtains and make sure everything was running smoothly.

"I want to be custom designer and producer! I already have ideas swarming through my head! I spoke to Mr. JohnDean about them right now and he told me to write 'em down before I forgot. What do you want to do?"

"I'm not sure yet. I'm scared of performing in front of people, but I _want_ to perform. I'm thinking that performing in front of others will help me become less…shy."

"Why don't you just try it out in front of me first? I'll tell you to do something, you do it, and let's see what happens."

"But I'm comfortable being around you…..but I don't know any of these people. I think I'm just going to stay back stage-"

"No no no no! I'm not allowing such thing! You are going to try it out and I know you'll do great. Besides, you look great for Vanessa! With high heels, curl your hair a bit, make-up, make you look latina, and voila! You'll fit the character!"

"The acting is what troubles me, Johnny. How can I act _lati_- Why are you smiling?"

"I think I know how to spice up a Hispanic version of you."

"How?"

"My mom's best friend's cooking and Mexican soap operas!"

"I don't like soap operas…"

"I don't care. My mom likes to video-tape them so she could re-watch them later on."

"I don't know…."

"You're coming with me to my house to get the DVDs. You'll watch ten episodes tonight and tomorrow you better come back with some latina flavor in you. And if you say no, I'll go to your house tonight and make you watch them."

* * *

_**"Maria, te amo! Tu no saves quanto yo te amo!"**_

_**"Roberto, yo te amo tambien, pero no puedo estar con tigo."**_

_**"Pero, porque no?"**_

_**"Porque….Amo a Juan Carlos tambien."**_

Momo stared at the television, confused at what they were saying; but, she managed to make out some of the stuff: Maria loved both Roberto and Juan Carlos.

_How cheesy…._she thought, turning off the TV and laying down. She stared at the syllabus Mr. JohnDean gave her and then at the characters list and synopsis for In The Heights. She knew she could come out of her shell and perform, but the question was, did she have the guts to do it?

Momo winced at the thought of not being able to do something, reminding herself that she had to contact her father today.

Sitting up, she took out her notepad and saw the telephone number she acquired from the internet that belonged to the Chemical and Mechanical Engineering Corps.. Pounding rather quickly, she pressed her trembling hands against her chest and took a deep breath, hoping to relax her heart.

Why was she so nervous? It's _just_ her father….

A man who could either help her or break her, and more than she already was.

Sighing, she grabbed her cell phone and stared at the numbers….

* * *

Toushiro watched as everybody began to leave, leaving him and his friends sitting down and watching stores close. The mall was closing.

Smoke suddenly hit his nostrils, turning his head and glaring at his friend, Toushiro spoke. "You know you're not supposed to smoke in here."

The teenager, smirking at the cancer stick in his hand, shrugged negligently. "Who cares? Everyone's leaving."

The other three males with Toushiro all nodded and took out cigarettes, lighting them up and taking a long inhale.

"Let's go outside, at least." Toushiro said, loathing the smell of smoke.

The boys, making sure the mall cops didn't catch them, swiftly headed outside, sitting down on a bench and resuming their smoking. Toushiro sat at the far end, feeling his head get dizzy as the smoke reached into his lungs and burned his windpipe. A cough suddenly escaped from his mouth.

"Gosh, Toushiro, I hate seeing you an outcast."

"I don't want one."

"Why the hell not?"

"I don't want to get sick. I run track. Can't have my lungs failing on me during a race."

"Aw c'mon, you freaking serious? You know Robby? Big guy? Plays football?"

Of course Toushiro knew him; that guy weighed more than two-hundred pounds and was over six-feet tall. Everyone called him Big Rob at school.

"Yeah…"

"He smokes a pack a day every since the eight grade and look at him! That guy's still as healthy as ever! Man, he looks better actually!"

"Eventually that'll destroy his body. If not now, then definitely later."

His friend rolled his eyes, tacking out an unlit cigarette from his box and handing it to Toushiro. "Stop being a wuss and take it!"

"No, I-"

"Take it! Just one puff and that's it; but trust me, you'll like it."

Toushiro stared at the cigarette for a few seconds, his mind battling out whether to take it or walk away. Jenaline had admonished him before about smoking; telling him that if she ever caught him smoking, he would have to find another foster home.

But then again, he'd been curious at some point in his life. Maybe one wouldn't hurt? He couldn't get addicted with just one joint. And what was the harm with just one? He assured himself that he wasn't going to go over one…

Sighing, he grabbed the cancer stick and placed it between his lips. He felt weird. His friend took out his lighter and lit up the stick, smirking and nodding his head.

"All right, finally Toushiro! Now exhale."

He did, but most of the smoke caught inside his throat and he suddenly began coughing, loudly. His friend flinched.

"I said exhale not inhale! You never inhale the smoke! That's how the people get shit like cancer."

Toushiro spit out some saliva and tried again.

* * *

After dialing the numbers, Momo closed her eyes and pressed **Call**. The phone rang twice before a lady with a sharp Southern accent picked up.

_"Chemical and Mechanical Engineering Corps. How may I help you?"_

"Hi, um….I-is L-Luke Pierczar th-there?"

_"Excuse me, can you repeat the name? I did not quite catch that."_

Momo took a deep breath, hoping it would halt the horrible unnecessary stutter.

"Luke Pierzcar."

_"Oh, Mr. Pierzcar. Can you stay on hold for a few seconds? I'm going to check if he's busy right now."_

"Alright…."

Momo heard a click and a boring classical music was heard coming through the line. But that didn't sooth Momo's frantic heart. She held the phone tightly in her hands, never fearing that she could accidentally break the small device in two.

_"Hello?"_

"Yes?"

_"Mr. Pierzcar is free right now, so I'm going to transfer your call to him right now."_

Before Momo even had a chance to register what the woman said, the line clicked and another one was then picked up.

_"Hello, this is Luke Pierzcar. Who's this?"_

Momo's jaw dropped as she heard his voice. It was deep, very deep and mixed with a Russian accent. She finally got to hear his voice! But what is she supposed to tell him now? Hello, I'm your long lost daughter?

_"Hello, who's there? I don't have all day to talk."_

He sounded angry, and trembling, Momo hung up, realizing that she wasn't ready for this at all….

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**And so I am finished! Anyway, how'd you guys like this chapter! Tell me in your review! Anyway, now time for me to explain certain things. The play In The Heights is a very popular play about the neighborhood. I haven't seen it yet, but I want to, since it's kind of related to my home country, Dominican Republic. The Glass Menagerie is an awesome play from Tennessee Williams! It's not long, very simple, and a great piece of art! The Blue Man Group is just a random play I found on TicketMaster, but I read reviews and people say it's good. *shrugs*. Anyway, now, with the whole soap opera thing, my family watches Mexican soap operas like crazy (well, the females...) and I only like 2, but they are OVERLY CHEESY and they all have the same plot stuff: the rich sexy guy has a sexy girlfriend who's a bitch and all of the sudden the guy meets this virgin sweet girl who's poor and he falls inlove with her, and she falls in love with him as well. But then, the guy has to compete for her love cuz she falls inlove with some other guy that we meet later on and the sexy girlfriend who's a bitch turns (more) evil and wants to kill the innocent girl just to have the male protagonist to herself. Yeah, how many of you have heard of that stuff before? Most soap operas are like that; what changes are the actors/actresses.**

**Now, with the whole Toushiro smoking thing...I know some (maybe most?) of you want to shoot me, but I am writing as if it's real and there are teenagers who do smoke! Now, if YOU smoke, you better stop now! My grandmother got Pancreatic cancer and died because of that crap and I don't want other people going through the same pain she went through! What Toushiro's friend said about people who INHALE the smoke get cancer and not the people who EXHALE it is FALSE! I made that up! Why? Because a lot of teenagers THINK that they know everything about smoking and drugs when in fact they're not aware that they're basically killing themselves: and this goes to adults as well! Inhaling/Exhaling smoke...doesn't matter! It's still fatal! So, if you're smoking, stop now!**

**Wow, long message Ruby...**

**REVIEW!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9! Thanks to ALL of you who patiently waited for my updates and reviewed! I have such amazing fans *cries*. Anyway, here's ch. 9! Enjoy & Review!**

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_Dear Diary,_

_Well, I chickened out yesterday. Just hearing his voice made me do it. He sounds mean and I don't know how I'm supposed to tell him that I'm his daughter. What if he calls me a liar and doesn't want to speak to me? Gosh, he probably thinks that all of this is some prank call and he won't even accept my call again. But I can't give up on him. He has to know that I exist. I will call again, but not now. Well, time for me to start practicing for the audition. It would be nice if I got the part of Vanessa, and hopefully I won't chicken out and embarrass myself. Until next time._

_- H.M._

_

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_

Toushiro was flabbergasted when he saw the cast list for the _In the Heights pla_y starring the Drama Club. Momo was playing the part of Venassa, and he was proud for her. A few days ago, he had heard her practicing in her room, reciting the Spanish and English lines. Just two days ago, Johnny had come over and taught her some salsa, as well as Toushiro, who at first just wanted to watch and had no desire to learn as well.

_"Sweetie, you have to shake your hips! You look like a freaking robot!" Johnny exclaimed, pausing the Celia Cruz song and then walking back to Momo. "You have to move your hips and smile. Gosh, I have to show you some videos so you can see how the women dance."_

_"…But I don't like shaking my hips. That's too sexual."_

_Johnny rolled his eyes. "Honey, this is salsa, not hip-hop. You don't need to be humping the air and shaking your ass as if that's the only thing you know how to do."_

_Momo giggled, turning her head as she heard the door open and saw Toushiro walk in. Oh great, an audience. She rather have Hyorinmaru watch her poor attempt at salsa than him._

_"Stop ogling at him; his sexiness isn't going to get you the part of Vanessa. Now, c'mon. I have to teach you how to sway and shake your hips to salsa." Johnny moved behind her and began massaging her shoulders. _

_"Wh-What are you doing?"_

_"Relaxing you up! Gosh, you're stiffer than the wall."_

_Momo smiled and noticed Toushiro sitting down on the sofa, watching them curiously. _

_"You want some sugar in your system? Candy? I brought some candy with me incase I need to hyper you up a bit."_

_"I don't like candy, but I'll try to relax, OK?"_

_"No. You're not going to try, you're going to relax and dance salsa as if it were your last day on this planet. Now, Toushiro, be useful to us and click the play button."_

_Toushiro stared at Johnny for a few seconds, hoping he would get the meaning that Toushiro wasn't there to help them, but after a minute or so of Johnny staring back at him in a commanding way, the white-haired boy sighed and clicked 'play' on the radio. Instantly, the salsa song resumed and both Johnny and Momo resumed their dancing. _

_Toushiro watched Momo's hips, not being able to take his eyes away from them. Hyorinmaru came in and jumped on the couch, placing its head on Toushiro's lap so he could pet him on the head. But the teenager was too busy watching Momo dance. _

_Johnny halted and clapped his hands._

_"You're getting much better! See, you just needed to relax!"_

_Momo smiled, mentally telling Toushiro to turn his head and stop staring at her body. _

_"You know what's better? For Toushiro to help us out!"_

_"What?" Toushiro blinked and stared at the gay teen._

_"C'mon, lazy boy, you're going to help your future girlfriend with her salsa."_

_"How am I going to help her if she already knows how to dance it?"_

_Johnny shook his head and rolled his eyes. Gosh, were straight boys so dull or what?_

_"She's not going to dance salsa alone! Salsa's not fun when you're dancing it by yourself, so you have to help her by acting like her partner!"_

_"I don't know how to dance…at all."_

_"Honey, that's why I'm here."_

_Johnny grabbed Toushiro by his wrist and pushed him towards the flushing Momo. Then, he grabbed his hands and planted them on Momo's hips, causing the girl to blush and Toushiro to close his eyes as he felt a tingling sensation in his stomach. Johnny grabbed Momo's arms and circled them around Toshiro's neck._

_"You two act so serious… Loosen up! Now Toushiro, watch my feet and Momo's feet."_

_Johnny replayed the song and stood beside the boy, slowly shifting his feet so Toushiro could scrutinize the steps. Slowly, Toushiro moved his feet the same way and Momo as well._

_Johnny let out a girly squeal. "That's it! See, it's not that hard. C'mon, Hyorinmaru, your going to be my partner!"_

_Obediently, the dog jumped from the couch and walked towards Johnny. The teenager grabbed its two front paws and helped the dog stand up on his two back legs, slightly bending and dancing as the dog, wagging its tail, moved from left to right as well._

Toushiro shook his head, smiling at the memory. He was glad that Momo got the part for Vanessa; she deserved it.

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Johnny put the letter away, telling himself to not let it get into his head. Besides, he should be happy! Mr. JohnDean is happy about his opinions of the play and has given him permission to direct the play. Additionally, Momo got the part of Vanessa and he would be there to help her out once her shyness decided to ruin things.

But then again, these letters were like daggers, piercing his heart.

"_You fucking fag! We rather see you dead than watch your queer ass walking around our school!"_

He immediately placed the typed letter into his tote bag, wanting to get home already and away from everybody else.

* * *

Putting her books away as she finally completed her assignments, Momo got her cell phone and searched for her father's number. It's been almost a week since she had last heard of him, and she wanted to hear from him again. She wanted to tell him straight away that she was his daughter, and if he wanted a DNA test to prove it, she wouldn't mind getting a doctor and taking a sample from her saliva or blood to prove it.

But that's only _if _he agreed to take one as well. What if he laughed at the idea and told her to never speak to him again or something like that?

Yet, her mother's friend told her that her father wasn't coldhearted. Maybe he'll be glad to have a child? But what if he already has a family and doesn't want her ruining it?

Momo groaned, tormented by these questions. There was only one way to find out and that was by manning up, calling up, and telling him that she was his daughter. After that, she would arrange a day in which they could meet so that way, he wouldn't think it was some prank. And if he wanted to bring other people "just in case it was some gang or murderer wanting him dead" as news sometimes portrayed, then she wouldn't mind. She only wanted to meet him, not hurt him.

Sighing, she called the number and waited for the receptionist to pick up.

"_Hello?"_

It was another person; a male this time.

"Yes, um… Is Luke Pierczar available?"

"_Who's this?"_

"It's…um…someone important. He'll know who. Please, I need to speak to him."

The male receptionist didn't speak for a few seconds, but then said, "_Fine. Just give me a minute."_

"Alright…"

The man put her on hold, a boring soft music suddenly coming from the line. Impatiently, she grabbed her pen and began to scribble over her science binder.

"_Hello? Ma'am, are you still there?"_

"Y-Yes."

"_I'm sorry, but Mr. Pierczar is in a meeting right now and he won't be available until it ends…which will be in two or three more hours. If you want, you can come and meet him in his office. After the meeting, he's free from work and will accept guests if they wish to speak to him. What's your name and phone number so I can tell him that you're coming?"_

Momo thought about it…getting a chance to meet her father? Why not! Biting her lips, she told him her name and cell phone number.

"_Alright, you can meet him at six-thirty this evening. If anything, I'll call you. Anything else, ma'am?"_

"N-No, that's all. Thank you."

She hanged up and sighed, her heart pounding loudly. Crap, how was she going to get there? He worked in the city, which was about an hour or two away form where she was. She couldn't take public transportation. She would have to take two buses and a train, and she wasn't sure where the train would leave her within the city.

Her only choice? Toushiro. And thankfully, he was home.

Taking a deep breath, she sauntered away from her room and towards his, her hand fisted and ready to knock. She heard him cough, twice, and wondered if he was all right. He had been coughing a lot lately.

He opened the door a minute after she knocked, his eyes piercing hers.

"What?" he asked, not sounding like he was in a happy mood.

Momo regretted coming to him. "Um, I wanted to ask you a favor."

"What?"

"Can you drive me to the city? Please."

His eyebrows furrowed. "The city? Why?"

"Because I want to see my father, and I don't know if I'll get this opportunity again. Please."

"You do know that it's an hour and a half drive, and Jenaline's coming back soon from work. What lie are you going to tell her?"

Momo hated lying to the gentle woman, but she knew that Jenaline wouldn't be ready to know about it.

"That we're hanging out in the mall or something. You know that she won't mind."

"Yeah, but if you continue wanting to go see someone about your father and lying to her about it, she's going to find out and she won't be happy. I'll drive you today to wherever he is, but you _have _to tell Jenaline about this soon."

Momo nodded. "I will, and thanks."

Minutes later, they were both ready. Toushiro left a text message and a note ( in case Jenaline had problems with her phone, as usual) about where they were going. To the mall, of course….

Toushiro took the quickest less-traffic way towards the city.

In the meantime, Momo thought different ways in approaching her father. Should she say hi and tell him immediately that she's his daughter? Or should she first ask how he was doing, get him in a good mood, and then tell him? Or should she-

"You're going to break that." he said, taking a quick glances at the phone in her hand and at the road.

Momo glanced at her phone and saw her sweaty fingerprints on it.

"Oh, sorry."

Toushiro shrugged it off, coughing, and then focusing on the road.

"Are you all right?"

The driving teen glanced at her again. "Yeah. Why you ask?"

"You're coughing too much recently, but you don't look sick. Maybe a little tired…"

"I'm fine," he said, his voice hoarse.

Momo shook her head. "You don't seem fine to me. You're….a bit paranoid. Are you _sure _you're all right?"

"Keep on asking and I'll turn the car around."

So for an hour and ten minutes, the two didn't utter a sound until they reached their destination.

The building was huge, probably twenty or thirty stories high. Men and women dressed in tailor suits and looking all professional came in and out of the building, holding briefcases and laptops.

Toushiro parked nearby, not having enough money to pay in order to use the building's parking lot.

They exited the car and walked up the steps, glancing around the area.

Once they reached the top, two security guards checked them and then let them in. People walked around the oval-shaped area. Three elevators stood in one side and three others stood in the other. A large desk was placed on the right side, and both teens sauntered towards it.

The man looked up at her and smiled. "How may I help you?"

"Um..I called about two hours and made an appointment to see Luke Pierczar."

The man nodded and checked on his computer, a few seconds later nodding and turning his attention back to her.

"Yes, your name's here. He just got out of his meeting and should be in his-oh, he's right there!"

Momo turned and saw a tall man speaking with four other people in front of an elevator. He wore a blue-striped collar long-sleeve shirt with black tailor pants and black shiny shoes. He had a gold watch on in his left wrist and a small tattoo in his right. She wondered what that tattoo said.

As soon as he felt eyes on him, Luke turned and his smile slightly faded. He walked towards them and Momo felt her blood run down to her feet. Her eyes widened as he suddenly looked serious and scary.

"Mr. Pierczar, this is the person who wanted to speak with you. Ms. Momo Hinamori."

Luke tilted his head, staring at her from head to toe, sensing something familiar about her.

"I've never seen you before, and you don't look like someone who works here…."

Momo opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. Crap.

"Well?" he asked, sounding a little impatient.

Momo turned her head and stared at Toushiro, who was staring at her back, for comfort. Feeling her chest and stomach ache, she shook her head and quickly jogged outside. She heard Toushiro jog behind her and her father calling her, telling security to stop her. But it was too late.

She was already by Toushiro's car, waiting for him to unlock the doors.

"Why did you run away! He was right there!"

"Just open the door, please! I want to get out of here!"

He looked at her perspiring face and nodded, opening the door and unlocking the others. Momo quickly got in and put on her seat belt, feeling the car shake as Toushiro turned it on and sped away.

"Sir, they got away, but we managed to write down the vehicle's license plate number. You want to call police?"

Luke shook his head. "No, don't worry about it. She'll come back."

"Sir, are you sure? They could be-"

"I'm sure." Luke said, turning around and walking back inside.

He knew that she was the one that had called him about a week ago and did not say anything.

"What's the girl's name? The one that wanted to talk with me and just ran away."

The receptionist stared back at his screen. "Momo Hinamori. Do you know her?"

Luke shook his head. "No, but she looks familiar. I have a feeling she's going to return."

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**I know...it's been a WHILE since I've updated. Sorry! I worked during the summer and school started already for me. Thanks for reading guys and..**

**REVIEW!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10! Hope you guys enjoyed chapter 9! If there are any mistakes in my chapters, don't be afraid to tell me! Anyways, enjoy chapter 10 and review!**

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_Dear Diary,_

_I really need to learn how to man up and face my dad. But seeing him for the first time just made me want to run away. He's very tall, a bit lean, has very dark eyes, brown hair and I noticed like three strands of white in it. Doesn't look old. I wonder if he has a girlfriend or wife. Darn, I should've stayed and talked to him…. But it's not that easy. I just met my dad for the first time in my life and almost wet my pants. I'll do better next time…whenever next time is…. And I hope I didn't get Toushiro in trouble. I noticed the security guards after us and they could've jotted down the plate number on Toushiro's car. Next time I see my dad, I'll man up and talk to him face to face….I have to start studying my lines for the play. Johnny and Mr. JohnDean want it to be perfect. Speaking of Johnny, he's been acting weird. He looks tired and that charm and smile he always has isn't there anymore. It's probably nothing and hopefully he'll be himself by tomorrow. Well, 'till next time._

_- H.M._

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"Perfect!" Mr. JohnDean exclaimed, running up to the stage and patting Momo's head.

The lights dimmed as the other students left the stage and sat down, chatting with their friends. Johnny skipped over to Momo and embraced her.

"You did fabulous! You started out weak, something we have to fix, but you rocked the ending! Ugh, be right back. Someone's calling me."

"Thanks." Momo said, patting the knee-length skirt she wore.

The clock turned five as students began to gather their things and leave. Toushiro stood with his hands inside his pocket and his **Track and Field **messenger bag hanging from a shoulder as he waited for Momo to finish. For the past three days, he waited for her until she was done rehearsing for the play. And silently, they would walk home together. Johnny would join them for the first five minutes of the trip but would then turn once his house came into view.

Momo wasn't sure why lately Toushiro decided to wait for her after his track practice, but she wasn't complaining. Walking home with him comforted her, even if they didn't say anything to each other. He would just wait for her in the auditorium, watch her practice; and once she was finished, she would gather her things, go up to him and smile. That smile would tell him that she was all set and silently, they would leave. When Johnny joined them, he would make them talk by asking ridiculously entertaining questions about themselves.

"Johnny, I'm leaving. You coming with us?"

The boy shook his head and a forced smile came rose to his face. Something wasn't right.

"Who was it that called you?"

"Some…one…"

Momo raised her brow teasingly. "Who?"

Johnny rolled his eyes and laughed. "Gosh you're nosy. I'll tell you some other time, but I have to run home now. Goodness gracious, walking home with Toushiro again? Use protection!"

Momo blushed and walked away. When would Johnny learn that she and Toushiro weren't on that stage yet?

She picked up her tote bag and walked over to Toushiro, who took out a bottle of cold water as he began coughing.

"You know, you should really do something about that cough."

"It'll go away."

"No it won't." Momo said. "It's getting worse. You should see a doctor."

"You're keeping record of my coughs?"

"Not me. Jenaline is. She told me last night that if your cough gets worse by tomorrow, she's taking you to your doctor."

Toushiro shook his head and walked away, Momo soon following him.

"Every time I ask you about your coughs, you act if I've caught you doing something that you don't want to speak about."

The end of Toushiro's lips rose and Momo grabbed his arm.

"Are you doing something….that you're not supposed to."

"Just forget about it…."

"No." She grabbed his arm again and made him turn around. "Something's going on."

"And what if something's going on? I'll fix it myself!"

Toushiro walked faster, his face reddening a bit, but Momo ran after him. She wasn't going to let him go like that. His coughs were getting worse and they were worrying Jenaline.

Once she caught up to him, she grabbed his wrists and pulled him towards her. Shocked by her strength, Toushiro almost collided with her as he placed his hands on her arms and steadied them. Once again, they were standing very close; but Momo tried not to let it get to her.

"You're smoking, aren't you?"

His eyes widened for a second, but his stoic expression suddenly came to view.

"Why would you-"

"I'm not stupid. You smell like smoke sometimes, your coughing, and-"

"It was only a few-"

"No, it wasn't only a _few_, Toushiro. I can't believe your dumb enough to smoke. Someone dared you, right? I thought you were smarter than that."

He brushed his hair and stared back at her. "I'll quit-"

"Yeah you're quitting. I can't believe you're stupid enough to smoke. I thought you were a smart person…"

"I'm sorry…" he muttered with a sigh.

"Don't apologize to me, apologize to your body and Jenaline. Jenaline's worried about you."

"She's worried about you too."

Momo looked at him confusingly. "What? Why?"

"She knows that we went to your mom's workplace for answers about your dad! And she knows that we went to see your father a few days ago."

Momo took a deep breath. "You told her?"

Toushiro shrugged. "Barely. She suspected what was going on now for weeks. She and that officer, Amy, have been talking for the past three weeks about you wanting to meet your father. They're not stupid, Momo."

"I never suggested they were, but I was afraid that they, especially Jenaline, wouldn't allow me to know about him."

"Jenaline wouldn't deny that from you. You deserve to know who your father is and she's not going to deny that from you, especially when you have no other relative around."

Guilt settled in her eyes as she stared down at her feet. "Jenaline must be angry with me now…."

"She's not, trust me. She just wants you to tell her everything this time. She's not going to stop you from seeing your father."

Momo smiled as she looked up at him. His head was slightly lowered but before she could've blushed at the closeness, he cupped her cheek and kissed her lips. Momo's eyes flew wide open but she didn't pull back. Toushiro's kiss, besides being unexpected, was great….

So great that she forgot that they were still outside and few students from their school were staring at them, gossiping with each other.

"_Isn't that the girl from the newspaper? The whore's daughter?"_

"_Yeah, that's her. And supposedly she didn't commit the murder and is innocent… Look at her…. Grinding her ass against Toushiro. Wasn't he going out with Sayuri?_

"_Wait, he has a girlfriend?"_

"_That's what the kid from math class told me."_

"_Does Sayuri know?"_

"_I don't know…But this will be proof just in case she doesn't believe us…"_

_The boy took out his cellphone, pressed the camera button, and began taking pictures._

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Momo was still shocked from the kiss Toushiro had given her five hours ago. A cool breeze entered her room, giving her goose bumps as she checked her Google-mail account, eyebrows furrowing as she stared at the odd email. She didn't know who the sender was, but something in her told her to open it. She opened it and read the message.

**Bitches like you are never innocent….**

Momo's eyes popped wide open as she reread the message for long torturing seconds. Who sent her this? But most importantly, how did the person get her email address? The only person who knew her email was Johnny and knowing him, he would never send her something like this. All fingers point at him, and even though he was acting peculiar lately, Momo was sure that he wasn't the one who sent her this. He couldn't be.

Swallowing hard, she noticed the attached file and prayed, clicking it and waiting as the file began to download. Taking a deep breath as the downloading soon finished, she clicked on it and waited as it opened: and when it did, Momo felt her stomach turn inside out and the food she consumed today crawl up her esophagus and almost to her mouth.

It was a picture of her and Toushiro kissing. It was when he had kissed her today in public. But who took this picture?

Whoever the person was, he/she succeeded in making her cry. She wiped the tears away as she suddenly realized the press and everyone who wanted a piece of her. People would enjoy a story of her kissing a boy. They would suddenly make false suggestions about her being a whore like her mother, having sex with more than one person, having STDs, and probably have had more than one abortion.

Her hands shook as she stared at the picture. Who was walking by them that could've taken this picture? She was so busy talking with Toushiro that she didn't look around her just to see who was walking by. She knew that some students from the high school were there, but she didn't know who.

Oh God, did this person send the picture to Toushiro as well?

He would be angry without a doubt. Toushiro didn't like being the center of attention, and a picture of them kissing surfing through the web would make him hate her. But she couldn't keep quiet as if it was a picture of nothing. She had to tell Toushiro, if not, then Jenaline. Hopefully Amy could help and see who sent the picture to her.

As soon as the thought registered into her head, Momo's laptop screen turned black. White letters suddenly appeared, a sentence forming of numbers and letters. Momo's heart pounded faster as her screen soon turned black.

Oh no…

She turned her laptop back on, a slight wave of relief traveling through her chest as the screen lit up and she was back at her desktop. But suddenly, everything began opening at once. Her web browser opened to her home page, but then the address on the address bar was erased and a new address was somehow typed in - a pornography one. Momo began to hyperventilate as pictures of nude women began to pop up, most of them with their legs wide opened and showing off their privates.

Trembling, Momo began to close the windows, but as she did, more windows were opened. Her Documents folder was opened and suddenly the pictures of her and her mother together by SixFlags, the beach, theater, zoo, and park were popping up and getting deleted.

"No…"

Momo couldn't lose those pictures. She was saving them in order to print them out and put them inside an album. That way, just in case her laptop ever crashed, she would have the pictures saved in print.

She tried going to her Recycling Bin, but once she got there, she noticed that the pictures were being deleted from there too. She didn't notice her tears falling until they landed on her keyboard.

"Please….stop…" she groaned, but whoever or whatever was doing this didn't halt.

Once all her pictures were gone, her iTunes opened and her favorite songs from there were deleted as well. Then came saved research papers from school, some games she enjoyed playing whenever she was bored, and finally her registry was damaged. Momo took a deep breath and all of the sudden, her screen turned black again.

Momo tried to turn her laptop on again, but this time, the screen remained black.

A photo of her and Toushiro kissing was surfing through the web and Momo couldn't do anything as her one and only laptop was destroyed.

"Momo,"

Her head shot up and she quickly wiped her tears away. Taking a deep breath, she closed her laptop and put it aside. She didn't want to tell Jenaline what happened just yet.

"C-Come in…."

The door opened and a red wide-eyed Jenaline appeared. Her whole fragile body was shaking as she held the phone towards Momo.

Something was wrong.

"Here, it's Johnny's mother."

Momo's brows furrowed as she grabbed the phone and placed it beside her right ear, her heart still pounding from the crashing of her laptop. She had never spoken to Johnny's mother before.

"H-Hello?"

"_I-Is th-this Momo? Sweetie, a-are yo-you M-Momo?"_

"Yes, it-it's me. Is something wrong?"

"_Oh God yes! Johnny's not breathing! I just called the police!"_

"What's wrong with him?"

"_He was beaten! Someone beat my baby! He's not breathing! I heard a knock and when I opened the door, he was lying there! He's bleeding from the back of his head and nose! Oh my Lord, someone killed my baby!"_

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**Chapter 10! Hope you guys enjoyed it! The whole hacking thing was "inspired" from when I was hacked. Remember? Anyway, that's how I felt when I was hacked: violated. It's not a nice feeling, it sucks, it's stupid, it's ILLEGAL, but there are violators out there and unfortunately fanfiction has violators in their websites. Another thing is the whole Johnny getting. Seriously, I would punch a hole in the wall if someone says that gay and lesbians DON'T get hurt just because they're homosexuals. In Iraq, homosexuals were gathered around, tortured, and then killed just because they were gay! In the U.S., there was a case in which a man was beat up and killed brutally when he came out of a gay club by 2 straight men! A lesbian in high school couldn't take her yearbook picture because she wanted to dress in a tuxedo! This world is very cruel & unfortunately there are a lot of ignorant people out there! Why can't we all just get along? Who cares if someone's gay, lesbian, etc...? Everybody calls homosexuality a "sin". I call it be _your self_! So, poor Johnny was beaten and I'm sure you guys already know why. Hopefully, it opened some eyes out there because the killing has to stop. I know there are some of you out there who're anti-gay. I don't care. I support equality. Ruby's a bisexual stubborn feminist: so you can keep harassing me (I seriously get harassed by people who _love _to send me PMs about why being gay is a sin, how being agnostic/atheist is bad and I'm going to hell, how Democrats suck...and I'm just like...what the hell...) about it, I don't care. I just go with the flow just to piss people off xD But anyway, away from those cockroaches (yeah, I insulted back, who cares? Not me!), and now towards my fans!**

**My fans out there...you...guys...are...freaking...AMAZING! Ruby's getting older and she has more stuff in her hands now, but I haven't forgotten about you guys! If I knew and met EVERY SINGLE PERSON out there who have supported me, I would give them the biggest hug ever and a slice of my best cakes! Whatever flavor you guys want! **

**For those who didn't know...I hate to cook...but I LOVE to bake! :D**

**REVIEW!**

let the harassment begin...


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11! Thank you guys for keeping up w/ the story & reviewing! XD! Enjoy this chapter & review!**

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_Dear Diary,_

_Everything went from bad to worse in less than five minutes. Fortunately, Johnny's not dead, but is unstable at the hospital. Police are investigating to see who did this, but it's going to be hard. Johnny's the only one who probably knows and he's not conscious yet. Doctor said he won't gain consciousness for a few days. His skull was cracked a bit, and the doctor suspected that it was probably done by a bat or something heavy. As for my laptop, I know for a fact that it wasn't Johnny who sent me that picture and messed up my laptop. But whoever did that to him probably is the same person who hacked my laptop. I've never been hacked before….I feel violated and I can't do anything about it. Johnny's the only person I can talk to about this, but he needs me more than I need him. All of this is making me not do anything. I can't eat, shower, or even walk without thinking about Johnny and praying that he's going to be all right. I can't believe he got beaten just because he's gay. I thought things settled down a bit, but it looks like I'm wrong. For the past twenty-four hours, police have been questioning everybody. They came to school and asked some kids about Johnny and if they had seen anything. I feel horrible for leaving Johnny behind the other day. I should've ignored him and made sure that he walked with Toushiro and me. His mom has been in the hospital by his side for hours. Jenaline tells her to go home and get some rest, but the woman doesn't want to. She's anxiously waiting for Johnny to open his eyes, and so am I. Until next time…_

_- H.M._

_

* * *

_

Momo's head still ached with a million questions as she entered the school. Even though there were hundreds of students walking by her, there was a quiet atmosphere inside the building. Due to the attack on Johnny, people have begun to act nicer; especially when they knew how close Momo and Johnny were. Nobody rolled their eyes at her or glared at her. A few people even greeted her now. But the teenager knew perfectly why they were acting this way:

They were all scared.

The officers had interviewed more than a hundred students on the attack. Students who had despised Johnny for being homosexual trembled even fear when they told the serious officers that they didn't know a thing about the attack, which was true.

Nonetheless, Momo knew that Johnny's attacker was somewhere inside the school. Every time she walked through the hallway between classes, she would glance at everyone and scrutinize their expressions every time they saw her. Some would quickly turn away and resume their business, but others would stare back at her and talk about her.

Sighing, Momo went to her locker and leaned her head against it, wanting to get out of school as soon as possible.

* * *

"Luke, my man, you won't believe this."

The man turned around and walked over to his coworker, looking at the man's newspaper to see what his friend was talking about.

"Isn't this the girl who came here looking for you? That teenager with the big brown eyes?"

Luke grabbed the newspaper from his hand and stared at the picture, recognizing the girl in the photo from the girl who had come looking for him about four days ago. Although half of her head was covered by the blanket two cops in the picture were putting over her head, Luke still recognized the girl.

"Yeah, that's her."

Curiously, the engineer began reading the old newspaper, which was dated back almost a month ago.

"Momo Hinamori…."

Her last name seemed familiar, but nothing in his head was clicking. However, he knew that he had heard that last name somewhere, but he wasn't sure where.

Luke continued reading the article, his eyebrows jerking upward as he read about the murders and people suspecting the young Momo Hinamori. His gaze trailed downward as he read the names of the victims.

_Lobert Thang_

_Asia Hinamori_

Luke's eyes widened as he read the name again.

_Asia Hinamori_

His mind suddenly showed him the image of the young prostitute he had once had a relationship with. They had dated for about a week, but unfortunately it hadn't worked out for neither of them, even though it took him months to forget about her and move on.

Could it be that girl was Asia's daughter? And if that's true, then why was she looking for him now? Unless….

Luke cursed and got up.

"What's wrong?" his friend asked, grabbing the newspaper from his hand.

"I think I have a daughter."

"_What? _Dude, are you on crack?"

Luke ignored his friend's ridiculous question as he sat back down. "Where did you get that newspaper from?"

"I remembered seeing that girl from somewhere, and you know how I never clean my house and barely throw my newspapers away. I found this newspaper under my couch just to reread the article. I knew I have seen that girl somewhere before. According to what these reporters are saying, she killed her mother and her lover, which is partially true."

"Partially?"

"According to what Momo Hinamori stated, her mother's _client _killed her and then went after her. He was about to rape her but she grabbed a vase and threw it at his head just to get him away from her. Little did she know, that vase hit him hard in the head, all the way to the brain, and killed him."

"Then she did it unintentionally and for protection. She never really meant to kill him."

"Exactly, but you know how some people can be. They start making their own editions of the truth and that's how others start getting negative opinions about her."

"Where does she live now?"

"Foster home. No reporter is allowed near her school or new home. If they do, they get a fine and, if Momo Hinamori wants to, get sent to court. Seems as if the poor girl has suffered, and probably still is. What's with the face?'

"A thought occurred to me… You remembered that woman I dated…..years ago?"

"Luke, c'mon, you know my memory's horrible. How many years was this?"

"Definitely more than ten. Fifteen maybe? I don't remember, but I dated a prostitute… Do you remember her?"

"Prostitute?"

"Yeah…. I think it was someone's birthday and we went to some strip club. You were there too. I had a one-night stand and all of a sudden, we were dating. You don't remember?"

"Sort of…Not really."

"Whatever. Doesn't matter. The thing is that I think this Momo Hinamori is my child. The prostitute I dated is the mother of that girl, so she could possibly be my daughter."

"You're not sure of that. What if the girl's father is someone else?"

Luke thought about this for a while. "They didn't mention any father of hers in the article. Besides, she wants to talk to me about something but I guess she doesn't have the guts to do so."

"I wouldn't blame her. You're about six-three and barely smile. No wonder the girl got scared when she first saw you."

Luke shrugged. "I never did anything bad to her."

"I'm talking about your physical appearance. It probably intimidated her."

Luke ignored his friend's rant about his "scary" physical appearance and thought about the woman he dated years ago and Momo Hinamori. Was it possible that she was his daughter? No, couldn't be. He remembered the woman, Asia Hinamori, and asking her about having a family of their own - but she had declined him. After weeks and months of not talking to her, even though he had given her his contact information, he thought that she had really forgotten about him. But it seems as if Asia had forgotten to tell him that she had been carrying his child.

"So what are you going to do now?" his friend asked.

"Finish what my….daughter started. If she's so afraid to talk to me, then I'm going to her."

* * *

_After school…_

Momo walked through the wide hallway, the smell if anesthesia and other drugs swaying up her nostrils. As she passed by the rooms before reaching Johnny's, she glanced inside and saw people with bandaged limbs or women who recently gave birth and were now holding their new babies. Momo was never a fan of hospitals, but she didn't mind now. She wanted to see Johnny and hope that he was awake.

Momo opened the door to his room, the second last one in the second floor, and saw his mother grabbing his hand and kissing it while praying to God that he would wake up soon.

Johnny's mother, her eyes puffy and red from crying, turned around and walked over to Momo, grabbing her by the shoulders and shaking her. "He still hasn't woken up! He should be waking up soon! Why isn't he waking up yet?"

"Give him more time. He was in bad shape when he was admitted. You should go home and rest. You're not looking well and it won't help Johnny at all if you're not looking well."

"B-But what if he wakes-"

"I'll call you right away, but you need to sleep. The doctor said that if you don't go home and rest, she's going to admit you to the hospital so you can rest here."

Johnny's mom nodded, her gray messy long hair swaying around her oval-shaped face. "All right, but please, even if he just opens an eye, call me."

Momo smiled. "I promise you that I will."

The woman smiled back, gave a quick kiss to Johnny's forehead, and left.

Once she was alone with her best friend, Momo sat by his side and grabbed his hand.

His once dark yet glimmering face was now covered with bruises. A bandage ran around his forehead, his nose was covered with a large bandage, and stitches were placed by his bruised lips. Both of his arms were swollen, but not as much as his face was.

Momo knew that her friend was going to be disappointed once he saw how bruised his face was. Johnny loved to be flawless. He thought that if he looked great, everyone would stop hating him.

The door opened and the teenager turned around, thinking it was Johnny's mother returning and not wanting to go back home. But it wasn't. It was Toushiro.

This was the first time Toushiro was seeing Johnny ever since the attack. But Toushiro didn't look like as if he was interested in asking about Johnny. His piercing gaze captured Momo still as his breathing quickened.

"Why didn't you tell me about the picture?"

Momo's eyes widened and her face flushed, knowing exactly what pictured he was talking about. She suddenly wondered how he found out. Did someone tell him about it or did the hacker who sent it to her send it to him as well?

"I got an email an hour ago with the picture attached to it and whoever sent it to me said that you had received the picture days ago and you didn't tell me about it!"

"Lower your voice. Jonny's sleeping."

"Johnny is not going to solve anything! Tell me why you didn't tell me about the picture before!"

"I…I was afraid of how you would react. I didn't want you to get mad at me, even though it's not my fault."

"Now it is your fault since you didn't tell me about it. That picture could be surfing through the web right now and everybody from our school could've seen it."

"I wasn't the one who took that picture. I was thinking of telling you, but I was afraid that you would hate me-"

"Instead of thinking about it, you should've told me right away! By now, everybody probably saw that picture!"

"You're acting as if it's my fault, when it's not. I wasn't the one that made the first move. I don't go around kissing a guy out of nowhere in the middle of the streets."

"Funny coming from a whore's daughter…."

Momo's body trembled as his cold words hit her. Whore's daughter. She suddenly remembered that this wasn't the first time he had called her a whore's daughter. Anger and sadness hit her heart as she thought about her mother and how she would ignore everybody else's rude comments about them.

Toushiro was just like them, and as much as Momo liked him, she couldn't help but hate him and how much he had hurt her heart ever since she had begin living with him.

It was a mistake liking him…

Sickened by the sight of him, Momo pushed him away and left the room, hurt so much by his words that she didn't hear Johnny telling them to stop fighting.

Toushiro cursed under his breath as he looked after her and then at the teenager lying in bed before him. Johnny's glare made him realize how badly he had hurt her.

"G-Go….a-after…her…" Toushiro heard the boy's words before he fell unconscious again.

* * *

"Lately, she's been acting weird. Every time I ask her how she's doing, she trembles and looks as if I had caught her doing something horrible." explained Jenaline to Amy, adding more sugar into her coffee.

The female officer shifted in her seat. "Has anything changed recently in school?"

Jenaline shook her head. "I have a big feeling that it has to do with Toushiro."

"You told me that you think they have feelings for each other."

"Yes, I did, but I think it's kind of hard for them to- oh, I'm sorry. Let me get that."

Amy nodded as Jenaline got up and went to get the door.

The woman opened the door and her eyes widened as a tall man stood five feet away from her with his hands on his hips, looking confusingly at her.

"May I help you, sir?"

"Yes, you can. I'm looking for a Momo Hinamori."

Jenaline's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "And you may be?"

The man shrugged, a small smile arising in his handsome face. "If the DNA comes out positive, her father."

* * *

**OK guys! What ya' think? Did ya like it? Anyway I decided that it was time for Momo's daddy to make an appearance and you know, help things out! xD School has started...again...so..if I don't update...blame school. But if I don't update for more than a month, it's because I'm planning on updating 2 - 4 chapters a day as a reward! =D I love you guys so much.**

**REVIEW!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Luke stared at Jenaline and then at Amy as the two women stared back at him. Neither women expected the man to pop out of nowhere and state that he was (possibly) the father of Momo Hinamori. Both women scrutinized him, taking in basic information about him: tall, dark hair, slight accent, and light hazel-brown eyes.

Amy considered him to be very handsome but, being professional and loyal to her job, ignored his appearance and thought about the different questions she soon would ask him.

"I guess you two are as shocked as I am." he said, staring from Amy to Jenaline.

"So, she went to you and that's how you found out about her?" Jenaline asked, afraid that this man wasn't her real father and was only stating that he was just to mess with the poor girl.

"She called my job before; I'm positive that it's her. And she visited me, wanting to talk to me."

"How do you know that Momo's your daughter?" Ami asked.

"I read an article about her, her mother, and the man she supposedly killed and there was also information about her not having a father. I recognized her last name: Hinamori and her mother was a stripper. I dated a stripper years ago and her name, I'm positive, was Asia Hinamori, the same woman that was murdered not too long ago."

"I see. But how do you know that she lives here?"

"Tow sources: I saw a picture of this house on the newspaper and her and some white-haired boy, her boyfriend I'm assuming, visited my work place. But they immediately left and one of the security guards wrote down the car plate's number. I have connections."

"I see." Jenaline said. "I'm glad you came and did not run away from your child. There are irresponsible men in this world who would."

Luke laughed, nodding.

"So you never knew that Momo was your daughter? Her mother never told you?" Ami asked him, her cop senses going up.

Luke shook his head. "No, Asia never told me that she was pregnant. She just called off our relationship and walked away. I tried speaking to her…but she wouldn't allow it."

Another heavy awkward silence fell between them until Luke cleared his throat. "Where is she?"

"Visiting a friend at the hospital. She should be back soon. Are you going to wait for her?"

"Yes, I will. I know she wants to talk to me but is afraid, so this time, I'll do the talking and meeting."

Jenaline smiled. "In that case, more coffee?"

* * *

Momo needed a punching bag, badly. She has never felt so irritated in her life before, and she wanted to punch something. For years, she ignored the insults and teasing from others. But now, she couldn't keep it inside. She cursed herself for being weak and not punching Toushiro when he called her a whore's daughter. He didn't know how hard it was for a mother to do something she truly didn't want to do just to keep a roof over her child's head.

But she couldn't let others' comments get to her. Wiping her tears away, she opened the door to Jenaline's house and froze.

Luke turned his head and smiled at her. "Hey there."

Her stare jumped from him to Ami and Jenaline, who were smiling at her. "You have a visitor." Jenaline said, indicating Luke with the tilt of her head. "Why didn't you tell me before that you were seeking your father? I could've helped you."

Momo didn't reply as she stared at Luke, wondering how he find out where she lived and why he was visiting now.

"Momo, don't be afraid." Ami said, standing up and grabbing her hand. "He's just here to see you and talk to you. And he also wants to find out whether you're his daughter or not."

But Momo didn't respond. She let the officer drag her across the room and sit her next to her father - if DNA proves so, of course.

Luke smiled, his eyes and teeth sparkling as he grabbed her hand and spoke. "Hello, Momo."

A brief silence took place, though it seemed as if it lasted for more than an hour to the nervous teenager. Ami glanced at Jenaline before clearing her throat. "Maybe we should give them some privacy. We'll be in the kitchen."

Momo didn't want them to leave, but understood that the situation was between her and the man sitting next to her. She stared at the floor, uncertain of what to say. But on the bright side, at least he was not scorning her for "stalking" him.

"I know I seem like some kind of scrooge, but I'm not. I just frown a lot when I'm stressed, but I'm a nice guy…I think."

Momo cracked a smile, similar to the one Luke had.

"You remind me so much of your mother." he stated. "So many years have passed by since I've last seen her. I think about her and what we had every time I see you. She was an amazing woman."

"And mother." Momo added. "She did an amazing job raising me, despite what she had to do in order to put food on the table."

Luke frowned. "I know, but I wished she told about you. I would've helped her and been there for you."

Even though Momo loved her mother, she couldn't help but be angry at her for not telling her and Luke about each other.

"How long did it take you to find out about me?"

"Not as long as I thought it would. I asked mom's employer about you since you two met in the club."

Luke smiled, brushing her hair lightly with the back of his hand. "I'm still surprised about everything. I've been a father for sixteen years and never knew. I need to catch up since I missed your first word, first walking, birthday parties-"

"I never had a birthday party."

Luke cocked an eyebrow. "Why didn't you? No Sweet Sixteen's-"

"I didn't have any friends when I was younger. Well, I had one…but then her parents found about my mom…."

"And they stopped the friendship. I'm sorry. You should've had a better childhood."

"I don't regret it. I saw how people treated my mother, and it was unfair to her. She worked everyday just to provide me with everything I needed. People always made fun of her, and I always defended her."

The man grabbed her thin arm and pulled her against him, embracing her for the first time. Momo froze, unsure of what to do. She wanted to hug the man back, but chills crawled her body as she mentally fought with her actions.

Luke pulled away, chuckling. "I can tell by your expression that you don't get hugged very often." Momo shook her head and her companion resumed speaking. "My mother always told me the importance of hugging someone when they need it. Your mother died not too long ago and I know you need as many hugs as possible. You're too young to be dealing with the crap you're dealing with now."

"I've gotten used to it."

"It's killing you emotionally. And then it'll effect you physically." He grabbed her small hand and smiled. "But don't worry, because I'll be here this time."

"But…what if you're not my father?"

"Let's not worry about that now. Instead, let's start talking about ourselves."

Sensing Momo's shyness over that, Luke decided to start off the conversation by telling her more about himself and what he does. He described to her his childhood life, the schools he went to, his great and awful experiences, and etc…

For five minutes, Luke told everything to her, including the time when he first met her mother. Momo thought of his normal life. He lived with his parents until he was 24, the same year he graduated from college with a Master's degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering. From there, along with his friend, he began working as an assistant engineering in the same building he volunteered throughout his high school and college years and from there, slowly climbed up to the position he now occupies.

Momo was quickly inspired to do the same thing, even though she wasn't sure yet where to begin. She became so thoughtful with the man's life that she didn't realize that Toushiro was home.

"Hello," Luke said, immediately recognizing the teenage boy and wondering whether he was Momo's friend or boyfriend.

Toushiro nodded and then glanced at Momo, who refused to meet his stare and instead had her head down.

Jenaline walked in to the living room and gave Toushiro a kiss on the cheek. "You're finally home! You probably saw him already, but this is Luke Pierczar. Luke, do you want to stay for dinner?"

The man got up and gave her a sad smile. "I would love to, but I have to meet with someone now. I'll stay for dinner at another time." Turning to Momo, he said. "I'll see you tomorrow." And with a pat on her head and several goodbyes, he left.

A few minutes later, Jenaline went back to the kitchen and Amy went back to the police station. An uncomfortable atmosphere soon rose between the teens, and not wanting to deal with him again, Momo went up stairs.

* * *

Four minutes before the bell rang, and as the teacher continued talking about her experiences in college and how she had to be tutored in college for Calculus, Momo stared at the small piece of paper with the words "I'm sorry" written on them. Toushiro must have left it between the time she went to bed and before she woke up. She hated feeling angry, but couldn't help it.

Johnny's mother had called Jenaline and told her that Johnny had been in a coma for the whole night but woke up fifteen minutes after seven. Momo wanted to see her friend, see for herself that he was still breathing, but going to the hospital wasn't easy. Her only way of transportation was Toushiro, but right now, things weren't bright between them.

The bell finally ring and swiftly, the students walked out of the classroom. As she walked to her locker, she felt the majority of the students staring at her. Some of these students had been questioned by detectives concerning Johnny's attack, and although a few didn't mind, the majority were angry at the fact that they were labeled as 'suspects'. Only Johnny knew who his attacker was, but right now, he was too weak to speak.

Sunlight kissed her face as she stepped out of the building and walked down the steps. People still stared at her, whispering among themselves about Johnny and it annoyed her that instead of minding their business, they were spreading rumors about him.

A car peeping at her broke her train of thoughts, and turning around, she saw Luke waving at her while standing beside a shining Mercedes Bentz car. The other students stopped staring at her and instead stared at the gorgeous four-wheel vehicle, which stood out among Hondas and Toyotas that some of the students' parents and teachers drove.

"What are you doing here?"

"Picking you up from school." He grabbed her bag and placed it on the backseat. Then, he opened the passenger door for her.  
Momo sat on the leather seat and the smell of clean car hit her. Luke closed the door and went to the other side, and as he turned on the ignition, Momo turned her head and saw the other students still staring.

Instead of taking her home, Luke drove her to his work place. The place where she first saw him. As he walked in to the building, he introduced her to his colleagues. Momo said her casual 'hello' to everyone and followed Luke to the elevator.

Luke's office was spacious, a desk sitting in the middle of the room, a small couch sitting against the wall and a plasma TV hanging on the wall across the couch.  
"I like to watch ESPN when there's nothing to do here." he told her.

His laptop sat on the middle of his messy desk, opened but the screen dark. Seeing the laptop reminded her of her crashed laptop and the picture that had been sent to her. Her English teacher spoke about research papers today, and Momo knew that she couldn't do her research paper with her computer dead.

"I spoke to my doctor today about a DNA test," Luke said, "And he doesn't mind giving us one. I told him to give it to us as soon as possible, and the best day he told me was three days from now at noon. Is that day OK with you?"

Momo nodded, glad to know that as soon as the test arrived, the sooner she and Luke would know if they were related or not. Luke sat behind his desk and turned his computer on, quickly emailing his doctor.

"Hey, we got the reports back for that new design you wanted." a man said as he opened the door and walked over to Luke.

Momo sat on the couch and stared at the unfamiliar person as he continued speaking with Luke.

Anthony, Luke's friend who was best at dealing with chemicals, gave him a yellow folder with ten sheets of paper inside. As Luke browsed through them, Anthony turned around and smiled at her.

"Hello. You must be Momo."

Luke looked up and smiled. "Yes, that's her."

"Nice to meet you. My name's Anthony." he said.

Momo nodded and stared down at her nails as Luke and his coworker finished speaking.

"I'm going to order some pizza for us." he said, reaching his cell phone and dialing.

Momo went back to staring at her nails and thought about Johnny. She had her suspicions about certain people in her school who, although in some Bible Club, detested Johnny for being gay. And it wasn't fair that the police hadn't interviewed these students just because they had a "moral code".

"How's your friend doing?"

"Not so good. He went into coma for about six or seven hours, but woke up this morning."

"Do the police have a clue of the person who did this?"

"No. They spoke with almost everybody in the school and I'm positive that someone from the school did it but…."

"But everyone denies knowing anything. That's how society works in our world. How's school for you going? I know you also have problems in your school."

It had been in the newspaper; how most of the student body called her names just because her mother was a stripper.

"I'm doing OK."

"Any big projects coming up?"

"I have a research paper to do on religion and what people think about it now that many out there have declared that they don't believe."

"Interesting. If you need any help looking for information, tell me."

"Thanks."

"Is your computer good enough for this paper, or would you like me to upgrade it so it can be better for you?"

Momo looked up and decided whether she should tell him about her computer. She had forgotten that he was engineer, and that he could fix her computer if she asked him to.

"My laptop….crashed. I'm going to the library to do the paper."

"Nonsense," he said, placing his feet on his desk. "When I take you home, give me your laptop and by tomorrow, I'll have it set for you. In the meantime, pizza arrived."

* * *

**Hello everybody! Whoa, MR finally updates :D I blame my life. It's so busy but I'm on vacation now :D Anyway, I recently learned that someone else was hacked by someone on FFN & her stories were deleted and etc...and now is the time for everybody reading to post an awareness on their profiles (doesn't have to be a story, just 1 or 2 sentences) about someone/people hacking FFN authors. Please, if you have your email address visible on your profile so users can contact your msn, yahoo, or whatever, please take that out now and make a new email address and forget about the old one. Once these hackers know about the email address you use for FFN, you have a chance of getting hacked and right now, it seems as if the FFN staff is doing nothing so we have to do something ourselves. So, please take off your email address & let people contact you through private messaging and avoid forums! Forums start fights b/c you're dealing w/ people who can't accept anybody else's opinions about anything. And take care. Don't post your email address in ANY of your stories or on your profile. Thank you :D**

**So, review?**


	13. Chapter 13

Recap of whole story: Momo is a 16 yr old girl who had a mother who was a stripper & prostitute. Her mother was murdered by one of her "clients", forcing Momo to go under foster care. The person who's her guardian now is Jenaline, who also fosters for Toushiro. Momo & Toushiro have a crush on each other, but not much has happened between them. Momo has a gay friend named Johnny, who was brutally attacked by someone & was in a coma for some time. While coping with the fact that Toushiro has a nasty attitude towards her sometimes, Johnny was attacked, and that her computer was hacked as soon as she downloaded a picture someone took of her and Toushiro kissing, Momo searches for her unknown father & finds that an engineer named Luke could be her dad.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach

* * *

_Positive_. Momo's eyebrows furrowed as she stared at the single word, feeling both happy and scared. Happy because, well, now she knows that she has a father. Scared because she is not sure in which direction her life is going to head now.

"…What does it say?" Jenaline asked, a nervous smile displayed on her face. Hyorinmaru stared at her, ears perked up as well.

Toushirou sat next to the older woman, curious, but emotions hidden behind his stoic face. Momo placed the doctor's letter on her lap and smiled at them.

"It's positive."

"This is amazing!" clapped Jenaline, and Toushiro let out a small smirk.

"Has Luke called you yet? I mean, I'm pretty sure he has received the letter as well since you got it today! Do you want to call him?"

"N…No….I'm going to let him call me. I don't know what to tell him. He may be my father, but I'm still not used to being around him so much. We missed so many years…. I don't know if it's too late to have a good father-daughter relationship."

Jenaline shook her head, placing her tea cup on the table. "Nonsense! You must not think like that! I've read stories about children meeting their parents more than 30 years later and still constructing a great relationship with them! All you have to do communicate with your father. Spend time with him."

Momo nodded, re-reading the letter one more time. Her excitement over finally meeting her father caused a goofy smile on her face – but she didn't care. It has been a long time since she has last felt any happiness within her. The only thing that troubled her now was her friend who was still in the hospital…

* * *

"I know that smile… It's positive!"

Luke glanced at his friend, folding the doctor's letter neatly back into the envelope. "Yes, it is."

"Ha! Great! Now I don't have to return this."

Luke's eyes narrowed as Anthony turned in his chair and took out a pink book. The front cover had a picture of a man holding an infant.

"What…is that?"

"A book…"

"I can see that, but _why _do you have that book?"

"I stole this from my cousin. My father gave it to him when his wife was expecting triplets – all girls! It's called _Step-by-step Guide on How to Take care of Your Little Girl _and…" Anthony turned, taking out another book from his messenger bag "_How to be a Daddy in Three Minutes or Less_…. I figured, since you just met her, you need to learn how to be a father…asap.."

"Tony, she's a teenager, not an infant. I don't think I need to read about how to change diapers or what TV shows she must stay away from…."

"Yes, but she's growing up and going to become a young woman! You need to start learning how to be a daddy before some boy snatches her up."

Luke smirked. "A bit too late for that. I think she has a relationship with that white-haired boy."

"The one with the scary eyes?"

"Mhmm…"

"That kid needs a drink…"

"They're just teenagers, Tony, don't go around mentioning drinks in front of them. I rather not have to lecture my daughter in alcohol. I don't want her to think that I'll be breathing down her neck 24/7."

"And this is why you need to read those books and learn how to become a father. She may not wear diapers anymore, but she's still your little girl. Besides, at her age, you have to give her the talk…"

* * *

Momo made a turn and continued walking down the hallway, balloons on one hand and a sparkly blue bag on the other. As soon as she made it to the end of the hallway, she faced the last door and knocked.

"…Come in!"

Momo opened the door and looked inside, staring at the bandaged boy lying on the hospital bed.

"Momo! Get your white ass over here!"

Closing the door behind her with her foot, she giggled and ran to him with her arms wide opened.

"Johnny, I missed you!"

"I missed you too, Momo! How have you been? How's school? Toushiro? And are these for me?!"

Momo nodded, placing the balloons and gifts on the table next to his bed.

"Of course. It took me a while to figure out what to get you; I hope you like it!"

Johnny opened the bag and took out a Victoria's Secret box. Inside the pink and white box were two bottles of perfume and hand-lotion. He looked inside the bag again and saw a long rectangular box with a beautiful silver necklace inside along with a small brown teddy bear with the words _friends forever _wording on its chest.

"I love this! Thank you so much! Your visit itself is worth a lot too. You're the first person that I've seen for the past two weeks, besides the doctors and other staff members of course."

"What about your mother? She called me and told me what happened…"

"She has called," he replied, setting the gifts to make room for her to sit down on his bed, "but hasn't visited. She's working two jobs now. My alcoholic father got fired from his and poor daddy has no money to steadily support himself. But enough about me; how are you doing?"

"I am happy, for once I can say," she replied with a small laugh. "I took the DNA test and it came out positive."

Johnny's eyes widened with surprised, his eyebrows rising and touching the band-aids on his head. "Really? Oh, that is great! So your father is OK with the whole I-just-became-a-father thing? He's not bitter about anything?"

"No, he isn't. In fact, he's been very helpful. He's even fixing my computer! Speaking of it…I got hacked…"

Johnny gasped and tried to sit up straight, but his aching back caused him to fall back on his pillow. "Who did it?"

"Don't know, but it started with this email I got. It was a picture of me and Toushiro kissing and all of the sudden, things started getting deleted and next thing you know, my laptop dies and doesn't want to restart."

"And you don't know who did this?"

"Nope, but I hope my dad finds out."

The two continued talking, Momo going further into detail regarding Toushiro and how his ignorance caused her to despise him many times. However, she admitted that what she felt for him was more than just a high-school crush; she really liked him and was mad at herself for doing so.

* * *

It took Luke less than hour to get his daughter's old computer running again and recover everything she had lost. He needed to teach his daughter the importance of setting up a backup – scratch that, he'll just get her a new computer instead.

As soon as the main web browser was opened, he noticed the sketchy email and the link. He narrowed his eyes and smirked, knowing that he was dealing with some amateur hackers. It's been a while since he had traced people's email address and even went far to find out _who _and _from where _said email had come from, but that didn't mean his skills were rusty.

* * *

Momo climbed up the stairs, wondering where Jenaline was at this time. Usually, she would be in the kitchen making some tea or preparing supper, but it was quiet. Shrugging her shoulders and thinking nothing of it, she reached the top step and turned towards her room; nonetheless, she stopped as soon as she saw the white-haired teen standing in front of her room door.

"Are you here to call me a whore's daughter again?"

"No, but I am here to apologize about that."

Momo lifted an eyebrow and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "I'm listening."

"I'm sorry for saying those things to you. You have been through a lot and I haven't been much help."

"And what made you suddenly realize that?"

"The fact that I like you…a lot," he replied, and the girl almost chocked on her saliva.

Her eyes never left him as he walked closer to her. He grabbed her arm as his eyes teased her.

"I was ignorant to judge you and pretend not to like you just because of your mother's reputation; but lately I've noticed that not only was I hurting you, but I've been hurting myself too acting like an idiot. Do you forgive me?"

"I do," she said, shrugging her arm away from his hold, "but this time, you have to prove to me that you're really sorry."

* * *

Officer Ami glanced at the email and pictures Luke had printed out as they sat at a café. He had called her and told her about someone hacking his daughter's computer and that he managed not only to find information about the hacker, but to know that whoever hacked Momo was also involved in Johnny's attack.

"This is disgusting," she said, placing the pictures face down on the table.

"It is, but at least you know that whoever beat that kid took pictures. Those pictures could be surfacing online right now in any website."

"You're right, and we have enough to even have an arrest."

* * *

**This chapter is short because I haven't updated this in 2 years (damn, Ruby) so this chapter was kinda to slowly get things back in order. However, next few chapters are going to be longer and more into HitsuHina relationship. I already thought of how to end this fic without rushing it. Thank you guys for reviewing and stuff, I am really sorry for the 2-year delay. Anyway, this story will soon take another route and yeah, I'll update before my vacation ends. Again, sorry for the delay. I'm happy that so many of you like this fic!**

**P.S.: I feel like a lot of people have left the HitsuHina Fanfiction part. Is FFN dead for Bleach?**

**REVIEW!**


	14. Chapter 14

Toushiro took her serious when she told him that he had to prove himself that he was sorry. He had to admit though that he wasn't sure _how _to form a relationship and show her that he cared; and this lead him to make a late night phone call to Johnny, who knew Momo more and had some really good advice. Of course, the teen had laughed at him through the phone before settling done (his bandaids constricted him from moving around much) and telling him to take things slow, and to think before speaking.

He thought of where to take her out in order to avoid attention from people who knew them and not because of what her mother was before she passed away, but because he knew that their life (_especially _hers) had suddenly received some type of Anjelina Jolie-Brad Pitt treatment and no one, including his "friends", would leave him alone regarding his housemate.

He admitted to himself that at first, it felt slightly awkward living with something who basically committed murder, whether in self defense or not. Nonetheless, having her around made him realize how easy it is for people to manipulate others. He had witnessed the stares at schools and even random reporters walking by the house, trying to get a word out of her. While a few argued that she shouldn't have killed the man in order to protect herself, Toushiro knew that what she did was her last option and knew that if she had not done what she did, she would be the one dead. He thought of what he would do if he were put in that situation, and instantly knew that he would defend himself as much as possible, even if it came down to killing the offender.

Momo wore dark-blue skinny jeans with a pair of black flats and a red blouse and had her brown hair down, looking elsewhere but his eyes as they waited for their food. Toushiro sat across from her, wearing white trousers and a black button-down shirt, staring down at the glass of water in front as he tapped his foot on the floor. Both of them found it ironic how they had freely spoken to each other before but now that they were sitting in a semi-crowded diner, waiting for their orders to arrive on their first date, made them feel nervous.

When Toushiro had knocked on her door and asked her what she was doing tonight and she responded nothing, she was surprised when he asked her out to dinner, especially when, for the third night, Jenaline had been out and neither of them knew where. She wondered if this was a date or just them eating out because neither of them were as good cooks as Jenaline – in fact, they weren't cooks at all and they didn't feel like making microwavable macaroni and cheese.

"How long had you had Hyorinmaru?" Momo asked, breaking the silence. They had to talk about something – saying nothing would just make their relationship (if you can call it one) more awkward. Besides, she wanted to know more about him.

"About eight years; brought him with me when my parents left."

Momo was suddenly interested, for she had never heard him speak of his parents much. All she knew was that his parents had left and Jenaline had taken custody of him.

"Where did your parents go?" She asked after a few minutes.

By the fact that he barely spoke about his parents, Momo wasn't sure if bringing them up was a good idea. Maybe he hated them for leaving and didn't want to think about them at all? What a horrible way to start a date. However, she felt reassured once he replied and didn't seem angry.

"At first, it was France. Then, Italy. From there, I don't know. Their jobs require them to travel a lot so I don't see them at all."

Momo's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "But, why are you in foster care?"

At that question did she finally get a reaction from him, which caused her to press her lips tighter into a thin line. He looked up at her and for once, she saw him look slightly distressed and uncomfortable.

"My parents had a big fight… One that led them to being arrested and me taken away. I still remember it. I thought I was going be living with some relatives, but since they have been in trouble with the law plenty of times, the authorities suggested that I go to foster care."

Their order finally arrived and Toushiro stopped talking as the man placed the plates in front of them. Momo stared at her hamburger and fries, knowing that if Jenaline was here and saw what they had ordered, she would scowl at both of them for eating junk food – especially during dinner time.

Both of them ate in silence, yet Momo wished he continued speaking about his estrange family. From what she had learned so far, his parents weren't deceased; and instead of being good, responsible parents, they seemed careless, especially regarding their son and the fact that he was in foster care miles away from them.

"I guess you're used to not seeing your parents at all…" she trailed off, head bowed but raising her eyes at him.

"It doesn't bother me as much now. Before, it did, and I refused to talk to them through the phone. Jenaline convinced me to talk to them despite them leaving, and I did. They promised a few years ago to come and visit, but never did. After that, I knew that they didn't care and therefore, I stopped caring."

"When was the last time you spoke to them?"

"About six months ago. We spoke for a minute and that's it."

"So…your parents are still together despite the fight?"

Toushiro nodded as he took a sip of his soda. "Six months ago they were – don't know about now, nor do I care."

Momo nodded and continued eating. Although she felt sorry for him, she was amazed to see how he didn't grow up with some tight-knit family, and neither had Johnny. While her mother may have been a prostitute/stripper and didn't tell Momo who her father was, she was always there for her and had become more than just a mother for her. Nonetheless, both Johnny and Toushiro grew up with both parents but neither felt their parents' love. Toushiro's parents basically forgot about him and instead were abroad 98% of their time; Johnny's father was an abusive alcoholic and his mother was too scared of him to divorce him; and while his mother was nice, she wasn't there for him all the time either. It amazed her to see how many judged her mother for being promiscuous when in fact she was a great parent.

"Jenaline should have arrived by now," he said, checking the time on his phone.

"How come she has been arriving late? Usually she's home early."

"Don't know. She hasn't told me anything lately and with exams coming and going, I haven't had the time to ask."

The two finished their meals and left their payment and tip on the table, exiting the diner and slowly walking back home. Momo thought about their conversation regarding his parents and realized that they shouldn't have started their date like that. She wanted to make him smile (since she rarely saw him do so) and now knew that talking about his parents actually made him sad, no matter how much he told himself that it didn't.

"What's the dumbest thing that you've done?" she asked, hoping to lighten him up.

He raised an eyebrow and thought for a second, a smirk slowly appearing on his face. "The one thing I can remember is skateboarding outside and years ago, there was a poison ivy plant in the yard. Jenaline told me to stay away from it until she called someone to get rid of it…but I didn't listen and ended up tripping over Hyorinmaru and falling on the poison ivy. Worst few days of my life…"

Momo giggled as she pictured a younger Toushiro tripping over the big dog and landing on a plant. As serious as he was most of the time, she admitted that that sight of him just falling over _poison ivy _was hysterical.

"What about you?" he inquired, "What stupid thing have you done?"

"Well, there was one time my mom and I went to an amusement park. She told me not to eat too much before getting on one of the rides…but I did and ended up throwing up. Worst part was that it landed on the guy next to me…" Momo responded, remembering the horror on that man's face and her mom frantically apologizing to him while taking out a ton of tissues out of her purse.

"At least you weren't itching for days."

"At least there wasn't a camera there to catch all the vomit flying around."

"OK, you won there," he said with a slight smile on his face.

They turned left and crossed the street, another silence falling between them. This time, however, it wasn't as awkward. She took in sight how different this town was to the one she previously lived in with her mother. While her previous town had more buildings, this town consisted of houses with well-managed families – yet, she could've sworn that a few men that she had seen around here had been to her mom's club in the past.

"Jenaline's still not home," Toushiro replied, putting his phone back in his pocket.

"She must be working overtime?"

"If she did, she would've called one of us at least." He said with a shake of his head.

"Maybe something came up. Besides, I was thinking that we should cook dinner for her so when she returns, there'll be food ready."

"You know how to cook?"

"No, but I know Martha Stewart has some cooking videos online."

Although the videos were narrated perfectly and the quality was outstanding, Toushiro and Momo ended up overcooking the rice, almost burning the noodles, and setting the entire kitchen in smoke. Toushiro paused the video and turned off the stove.

"We should have bought her outside food instead."

Momo agreed as she dumped the rice in the trash. The teenagers ended up cleaning the kitchen and ordering Italian food for her. The day was getting darker and Toushiro dialed her phone again.

"Still nothing?"

"No, but I'm going to try some of her coworkers."

Momo finished washing the pans and then went to throw out the trash, feeling guilty and wanting to hide the evidence of the terribly cooked food before Jenaline arrived. Hyorinmaru, nosy as he was, followed her outside. She looked around and smiled at the fact that there were no more reporters passing by the house to get more information from her. It was relieving to know that finally people had given up on knowing about her life and minded their own business.

The dog next to her started barking, alarming her as she turned around and saw her father and Tony walking towards her. Hyorinmaru ran up to Tony and started barking at him, but knew better than to attack the man. Momo grabbed the dog by the collar and dragged him backwards, watching as Tony took his hand out and let the dog sniff him.

"He won't hurt me. Dogs love me."

"Not the one your ex owned," Luke responded. He then turned his attention to his daughter and ruffled her hair as if she were a small child. "And how have you been?"

"Good and busy with exams. Come inside," she said nervously, unsure of how she was supposed to act around her father, "but Jenaline isn't here."

The two men followed her and the dog inside the house as Toushiro walked out of the kitchen with his shirt in his hand. Momo blushed and looked at her father from the corner of her eyes, mentally cursing her housemate as she saw her father's eyes narrow. If her mother were alive, she would have been glad that she had a cute _friend_, but her father looked like he wanted to have a serious talk with Toushiro.

Toushiro stared at them. "I got grease on my shirt," he said matter-of-factly and Tony laughed.

"Nice excuse, kid, but you can't trick papa bear over here."

Understanding why Luke was giving him a stern look, he muttered something about laundry underneath his breath and ran upstairs.

"Maybe you should give her _the talk_," Tony whispered and Luke shook his head at him.

Smiling, he turned towards his daughter and out a large rectangular box out of the plastic bag he was holding.

"I found the virus that was on your old computer and got rid of it; however I bought you a new laptop." He handed her the box and smiled as she opened it, "Also, I managed to track the email of the person who sent you the virus and sent the information to Officer Ami."

Momo's eyes widened as she remembered the picture of Toushiro and her kissing that was in the email and blushed as she realized that her father probably saw it. Now he probablygot ideas that her and a shirtless Toushiro were doing something in the kitchen...

"Wh-Who sent it to me?"

"I'm not sure of the _exact_ person who sent it, it could've been anyone using the computer, but I did some _research _of my own and found an address. The address is actually two and a half miles away from here, so whoever emailed you doesn't live far. Not only that, but that person is also involved in the attacks of your friend Johnny. There were some pictures of him lying on the ground bleeding, most likely from the day he was attacked."

Momo didn't know what to say as she processed this information. So her mysterious hacker had pictures of her friend lying unconscious and bleeding on the ground, and knew that he or she was going to use that to hurt Johnny more. She wasn't sure why those pictures haven't been going around the school yet – and she was glad that they hadn't – but she was afraid that as soon as Johnny left the hospital, those pictures would resurface.

"Do you know anyone by the name Amanda?" Luke asked her, and Momo shook her head. "That's the name of the account holder from where the email was sent. Again, someone could've hacked her and used her information to mask theirs, or she could've been directly involved."

"What's going to happen now?"

"Ami has all of the information I gave her and she already reported it to her boss and the detective working on Johnny's case. So, from now until tomorrow afternoon, they will visit the house and make an arrest."

Momo nodded, anxious to meet this Amanda person and wonder why she had harassed her online and had pictures of Johnny when he was attacked.

Toushiro came back downstairs wearing a different shirt and Tony chuckled at him.

"Papa bear isn't going to forget what happened, new shirt or not!"

"Momo and I were cooking for Jenaline and I spilled grease over my shirt…_nothing _happened," Toushiro responded, trying not to make contact with neither Luke nor Momo.

"I _like _that kid," Tony told Luke, who smirked in return, "he's pretty feisty."

The door handle shook a bit and the door opened, revealing a tired looking Jenaline. Her hair, which was always in its usual neat bun, was now cascading around her shoulders. Her face looked sweaty and instead of standing straight, her back was hunched over as in pain. Worried, Toushiro walked over to her and grabbed her purse with one hand and her hand with his other, leading her towards a chair.

As the woman sat down, she looked up and saw the two men staring at her. "Oh dear, I didn't know we were receiving visitors. Had I known, I would've been home earlier and made you something to eat, or at least some tea or coffee."

"Don't trouble yourself, ma'am," Luke said with a warm smile, "Tony and I already ate, but thank you for the offer."

"What about you two?" Jenaline asked, looking at the two teens.

"We ate at a diner an hour ago so we're fine. I also ordered some Italian for you; should be coming in ten minutes," Toushiro said, placing her fuzzy slippers next to her.

"Kid knows how to treat a woman right," Tony remarked, smirking.

Momo glanced at her housemate, watching him turn away from Tony, amazed at how easy it was for the man to make him uncomfortable.

A few minutes after the food came and nighttime officially set in, Tony and Luke said their goodbyes and left. Jenaline murmured something about taking a hot shower and going to bed early as she slowly climbed up the stairs and Hyorinmaru followed her with his ears and tail down.

Momo stayed in the dining room, getting used to her new computer and setting up a new email address as her father had instructed her. She still wondered, nonetheless, who this Amanda person was and why she was targeting both her and Johnny. Maybe Johnny knew her?

"I heard what your father said about knowing who sent you that email." Toushiro said, startling her (for she had not heard him walk in) and sitting down next to her.

"Yeah, he told me that whoever sent me the email was also connected to the assault on Johnny. He found pictures of him lying on the ground of the night he was attacked. Do you know anyone by the name of Amanda?"

Toushiro shook his head. "Not personally, but I do know a few people named Amanda in our school. But none of them know us personally to know anything."

Momo nodded. "I was thinking that probably Johnny knows someone close to him with that name, but he doesn't talk to anybody but me in the school."

"It could be someone random, not necessarily a friend or classmate, wanting to mess with you," he pointed out, "but at least now we know who's behind it."

"True, but then it's going to go around the school about the hacking and picture and people will want to know more. I'm actually nervous for the next few days. It seems as if my life will always be an open book."

Toushiro stayed shut as he thought of her words. Many students at the high school knew of her, of her mother, and what had happened and occasionally gossiped about it whenever they got the chance.

What's even worse is the fact that now Johnny's problems were going to become hers and both of them would be judged and bullied for other things. For once, he saw the cruelty in the school and among the students, yet he knew that many students at the school had problems as well – the only difference was that theirs were never displayed on a newspaper for everyone to read.

Feeling at a loss of words, he grabbed the back of her head and planted a kiss on her lips, whispering goodnight and heading back to his room.

* * *

**I wanted to focus this chapter more on HitsuHina and Toushiro side since we don't know much about him & why he was in foster care. This story is a few chapters away from being finished - I have the ending planned in my head so 2 - 3 more chapters and that's it for this story. Thank you all for reviewing & favoring & following! Don't be afraid to criticize me because I am _not _the best writer & will never be! My ideas are unique, I will admit, but my writing style if bearable I guess? Anyway, I'm not going to become a writer so I kind of don't care yet I do try my best to write as best as I can & to have as little to no errors as possible. Anyway, I am forcing myself to finish this story before August 27th (as well as my story Unknown) that way I don't keep you guys who love this fic waiting any longer. **

**Last chapter I stated that Bleach fanfiction was losing its love, & I think it's because Bleach itself has gotten...unoriginal(?) lately? Either that, or more people are interested in other, newer shows? I did resume watching Bleach (I stopped after Ichigo beat Aizen) & I'm on ep 323, but I just don't feel interested in it no more because the new characters don't stand out in my opinion. I LOVED the Hueco Mundo arc when we got introduced to Grimmjow, Ulquiorra, Yammy, but now, these new characters are...meh...& that's a shame because the whole concept of Bleach & spirits & soul reapers is amazing but...meh D: **

**Anyway,**

**REVIEW!**


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